The Light in His Eyes
by geminigirl211990
Summary: Vampires have revealed themselves to the human world, what should the outcome be? The debate on how to handle the situation rages on...
1. Chapter 1: Soul

A/N: Hey guys! Well here's a shocker, my first fic over 200 words!!! Sorry if there are a bunch of mistakes, but I currently don't have a Beta (if you know somebody that would be interested, could you give me a heads up?). If you're able to get through this chapter, there is another A/N at the bottom for your fun-filled choices. On your mark, get set, read!

* * *

**The Light in His Eyes**

_Chapter 1: Soul_

* * *

**BPOV**

The definition of a soul, can you give a definitive one?

Many people have contemplated if we do indeed have a soul, philosophers and scientists alike. There have been many indications of a soul to those who search it out, whether it be "light in the eyes" or the kindness of actions.

I, for one, believe in souls. Sadly, most of the world's population does not, thanks to the emergence of the once "mythical" vampire race. No, they didn't exist in just our imaginations and stories, these creatures were real.

Contradicting the beliefs of many countries' folklore of secrecy, a vampire revealed himself to authorities after saving at least a dozen people from a burning building (on many floors) within a span of just a couple of minutes, on one of the many winding streets in Chicago. His name was Carlisle Cullen.

When confronted on how he was able to perform such a feat by bystanders and law enforcement, he confessed his nature and gave quite a show on some of his abilities of strength and speed (not to mention the fangs protruding from his mouth in response to his previous heightened emotional concern for others). Carlisle went further in his explanation, stating that he was a "vegetarian" quenching his thirst on the local wildlife, and included his adopted family in that category.

To say that this came as a shock would be an understatement, globally the human psyche went into frenzy. Vampires _existed_. What were we supposed to do with this information? Run for the hills? That was a suggestion by some, while others embraced Carlisle and his philosophy (he had worked with numerous people before his proverbial outing at a local hospital) and accepted the rest of the vampires that stepped forward and declared that they valued human life.

The Cullen family/coven (depending on your attitude towards their kind) were thrust into the spotlight, and they made use of their fame, donating to charities, and using their diplomacy to advocate equal rights for their race in our world.

Their diplomatic endeavors were needed sadly, as many people found the idea of vampires both dangerous and revolting. The discovery of vervain as a repellant and form of protection brought a sense of relief for those with prejudice against vampires. It also created a dangerous weapon against them, because it could be shot through guns in the form of darts. Unsuspecting vamps that mingled with humans regularly could be gunned down, and with too much of the herb, could be incapacitated. This resulted in dismemberments and flaming pyres, resulting in numerous "deaths", seeing as some didn't consider vampires alive anymore with the absence of a heartbeat to begin with.

The interview I was currently watching in class was part of the new curriculum for my high school history requirement, since Dr. Cullen's words would forever be inscribed in our history. I was supposed to write an essay regarding the issues raised and my predictions for the future. Although I had never really enjoyed history, I found this topic fascinating.

How anyone could ever doubt that his kind didn't contain souls? I never would. Looking into the eyes of Carlisle Cullen on television, I saw light and kindness.

I saw a soul.

* * *

A/N: SOOO.......? What did you think? I was planning on expanding this into a multi-chap fic if I recieved enough feedback telling me it was worth it (or not). If you didn't notice, I am not sticking to SM's definition of vamps, but hey, we need variety in our lives, right? As of right now, I have no idea where this is going, so I'll just leave it at an M rating for the time being, and I have a couple of ideas swirling around, so hopefully I can produce something you will all enjoy... Thanks again for reading!

-gg


	2. Chapter 2: Doughnuts and Sanctuaries

I realized last time I didn't give SM her due and felt like a total itch-bay afterwards (yay Pig Latin, I'm so bilingual right now...). So, without further ado, I, sadly own none of these characters, they belong to the lucky Stephenie Meyer, but a girl can dream, right? However, this particular plot is mine (and whatever crazy direction it takes).Copyrighted 2010 by geminigirl211990!

* * *

**The Light in His Eyes**

_Chapter 2: Doughnut Timelines and Sanctuaries_

* * *

**BPOV**

After a weekend filled with typing and research, I was able to print out the final draft of my vampire history paper that I deemed worthy of an 'A' if I do say so myself.

Hello, my name is Bella Swan, and I live in the little (and I stress _little_) town of Forks, Washington. I'm seventeen years old, and currently attend Fork's High School. I'm not that into the typical high school sports universe scene (pom poms just aren't my style), so I focus my attention on vampires' rights through petitions and donations, you know, just doing my part, when I'm not swamped with homework.

My father is Charlie Swan, the chief of police, a strict and stereotypical officer, the kind who has to have coffee everyday and a mustache that would make Burt Reynolds proud.

I live with my father here, while my mother Renee is in Florida with her fiancé Phil. The reason for this is that while my father and I are sympathetic to the emerging vampire populations, they aren't. They moved to Florida for the sole purpose of attaining a _lot_ of sun so as to keep them safe (vampires aren't as sensitive as the legends say, but the sun does weaken them a bit), and that put a strain on my relationship with my mother. This lead to our estrangement, but I still receive a little note on my birthday every year, so I know she's still alive. So I came to live with Charlie, and it's been _interesting_. Living with my dad has made me realize that guy mannerisms and routines are very different from girls'.

Anyway, on to the other important things in my life…

Well, it was the time that everyone under the power of the public school system despised: Monday. I never really enjoyed getting back into the routine after a homework-filled weekend, I _do_ like to sleep, but hey, it was necessary to actually have a successful future, right?

I jogged clumsily around the puddles to my Chevy truck with my backpack to get out of the rain steadily pounding onto the ground. Once inside, I started the truck, blasted the heat and (under the watchful eye of my father as he got ready to leave for work) carefully made my way to school.

Once there I found my small group of friends talking underneath the overhang of a building. I made my way over to them only to hear one of many random conversations that would be taking place that day.

Eric and Tyler were discussing something of great importance to them: food, or more importantly, doughnuts. It seems that my girlfriends Jessica and Angela brought a box to share.

"Dude, I haven't had a doughnut in months!" Apparently, Tyler was feeling deprived.

"Well, I haven't had one since…Sunday!"

"What are you talking about? It's Monday and it's only 7:00 in the morning! I saw you eating one when I drove by the diner yesterday!"

I snorted. _What kind of debate was that?_

Thankfully, before the confrontation could escalate, the bell mercifully rang and we made our way to class. School was, well, _school_. I turned in my essay and listened to all of the necessary instructions for my classes. Learn this; learn that, there will be a test soon…blah, blah, blah. I loved school, but we had heard this all before. _Repetition is needed for learning, right?_ Thankfully, the day went by pretty quickly, but virtually uneventful.

On my way home, I drove by the Denali's house, seeing the 'sisters' that lived there imitating what we humans do on a daily basis (or at least I hope so): cleaning. The members of the Denali family were Fork's first vampires and were mostly accepted into our small town society (although it had taken some time). I had a pretty decent relationship with the eldest sister Tanya. I had interviewed her for our school paper, because I wanted to shed light on their lives, so as to have less hostility towards them in the community. We had become good friends, and I visited them from time to time.

After driving along one of Forks' winding roads, I finally made my way to my house and rushed to get inside; it was pouring. When I reached the living room, I immediately turned on the television to see the random bits of news of the day while I dried off. Amongst the trivial sports recaps and local events, the news station received an alert. What I heard next sent a chill down my spine.

"_A clan of vampires that don't wish to partake in a lifestyle that would be beneficial for everyone with a pulse, has been rapidly growing and traveling down the East coast, gaining new members and hunting in towns for the sole purposes of nourishment and recruitment. Authorities say…"_

I didn't want to believe it, but I knew that not all vamps out there would be like the Cullen family. To me, it seemed that they were building an army or mob. What they were planning to do with their growing numbers was beyond me at the moment, but it didn't sound good. _Somebody will figure it out soon,_ I told myself. _And hopefully take the proper course of action._

I just prayed that the vamps would be cooperative and a compromise could be made. I had no idea why, but I really wanted this new coexistence with the vampires to work out. My friend Jake that lived in the Quileute reservation nearby would say that was the trademark aspect of my personality: a big heart.

Seeing as how Charlie was still at work, I prepared some sandwiches and left the in the fridge so he would have something to eat later. The homework assigned tonight was a breeze, and I had finished it in study hall, so I had nothing to do. After about an hour and a half of cleaning the house, I deemed that it was as close to perfection as I could get it, yet I was still restless. I really wanted to go to Port Angeles to browse through the book store, because I had read everything I could find in the house that wasn't required for school. Looking through the window in the living room, I saw the rain had lessened to a mere mist, and smiled. Based on the current weather conditions, I was decided.

Always mindful of Charlie's rules, I packed my mace and a small vial of vervain extract in my messenger bag. Although Charlie was sympathetic towards vampires, he always made sure we were able to defend/protect ourselves should the situation take a turn for the worst. I also made sure made sure my cell phone and wallet were in my pockets.

With everything set, I locked up, got in my truck, and started the trip towards one of my few sanctuaries on earth: a building with endless shelves of books.

* * *

A/N: Thank you so much to my lone reviewer aerobee82 for your words of encouragement. I know, there wasn't any Edward in this chapter, but I promise that he'll make his appearance _soon_. BTW the doughnut dialogue was based on true events that took place between a close friend and myself during our senior year in high school, I still tease her about it to this day. Remember, reviews are love! Until the next chapter...

-gg


	3. Chapter 3: A Moment

Thank you to my reviewers, I will never be able to repay you for your kind words. As always, I don't own any of these characters, SM does (it kills me...). This chapter is dedicated to aerobee82, since you were so anxious to hear Edward's side of the story. Well the moment you all have been anxiously waiting for: the meeting. Copyrighted 2010 by geminigirl211990.

Well, why are you still doing here? There's more interesting things to read below...

* * *

**The Light in His Eyes  
**

_Chapter 3: A Moment  
_

* * *

**EPOV****  
**

As I wandered the streets of Port Angeles under the cover of the ever present rain clouds, I contemplated my…_existence_.

_What was I supposed to do with being immortal? What were the ramifications of me actually being here?_

These thoughts constantly flitted around my head throughout my many years of 'life', along with all of the minds within a couple miles.

I have been a vampire since the early 20th century, after relinquishing my human life to the Spanish Influenza in Chicago. It was there that a man named Carlisle Cullen found me, barely breathing and hanging on to coherency by a thread as the fever I was enduring began to eat away at my body. My parents had already perished due to the epidemic just days before, so I had nothing to live for anymore, and I was almost welcoming death as I approached what was the end of my time on earth.

Carlisle had been my doctor, tending to me as best he could (technology and medical practices weren't as advanced and effective as they are now), but he felt that I was destined for something else _and_ he was incredibly lonely, so he decided to extend my rapidly dwindling life. Although I had always good at reading people, I hadn't felt anything 'off' about him until that night. He rushed me out of the over-filled hospital on a gurney during the night; the staff of the hospital didn't even register that I was missing amongst the thousands that were occupying their beds.

At his well staged house (appearances were everything, and gossip traveled fast), he prepared me for the transformation that would forever change the course of my future. He lived far enough away in the countryside so I wouldn't pose a threat to the 'living'.

I didn't really register that he had single-handedly picked me up and place my almost catatonic body onto a bed, but I felt the movement. It was in that bedroom that he stole me from the clutches of death itself with many strategic bites along my pulse points; injecting the elixir of life into my veins in the form of venom.

Venom.

It was the cause of the most excruciating pain I had ever experienced. Even the chills and uncontrolled convulsions from my fever were nowhere near as intense as what I felt as Carlisle sealed the wounds and stepped back to witness my human life fade and my new life flow through my veins over the course of three days.

When I emerged from what I had thought were the fiery pits of Hell itself, disorientation took hold. My ability to anticipate others' actions in my human life had been magnified into actual mind _reading_. Carlisle was there the instant my eyes opened to reveal a world in a much clearer definition than what I had previously seen and experienced.

From that moment on, I was introduced to a world of mythology that I was now a permanent citizen of. I became Carlisle's first companion in his vampiric life, and he became my second father. Without him, I would have been a feral demon that human legends had warned the next generation to be wary of. Over the next couple of years, he helped me hone my skills for hunting animals in the place of our human counterparts and to use my mind reading abilities to help those in need. When he finally deemed me disciplined enough, we traveled through towns, posing as father and son, colleagues, etc. He taught me all he could about the practice of medicine, and I became his apprentice throughout the decades.

However, as every adolescent experiences at one point, I felt the need to branch out on my own. By that time, Carlisle had acquired a more complete family. He had amassed a much larger company during our travels, and it proceeded to grow. Shortly after finding me, he changed the woman who would become his wife after a horrific fall from a cliff during a day of sight seeing. Her name was Esme. He also created a daughter when he discovered Rosalie freezing to death during a severe winter, begging for scraps of food.

With Rosalie, came Emmett, when she found him in the middle of a forest, disoriented and fading away before her eyes after being mauled by a bear while hiking through the wilderness. With one look at the dwindling life force before her, she was convinced that he was meant to remain with her and acted.

Doubting her ability to stay in control of her nature, Rosalie had rushed Emmett to our residence at the time. She pleaded with Carlisle to save Emmett's life, and he relented when he saw the feverish anxiety and worry etched on her pale face.

Emmett's change went smoothly, but the post-transformation during the first couple of months were _unbearable_. I couldn't stand to be anywhere near Rosalie and him; their 'romantic' thoughts were the things of my nightmares, if I still had the ability to sleep.

When I left Carlisle's family, they were heading back to Chicago after a few years in Alaska. I was in a state of severe depression, although it had abated a bit with the new additions to the family. I was alone and confused with what I was supposed to accomplish, according to Carlisle. I was determined to create a goal for myself, and finding a direction for my existence was it, otherwise, I felt there was nothing left for me anymore.

So I found myself in the rainy state of Washington, full of lush forests and substantial areas of wilderness, devoid of human development and accompanying thoughts to 'soul search'. I wasn't convinced I had a soul, I mean, I was a creature designed to prey on innocents without thought, just the instinct to feed and survive. When I looked in a mirror (yes we vampires have reflections, whoever brought that superstition to everyone's attention was on some sort of drug in my opinion) I didn't see a person, I saw an empty vessel, doomed to wander the earth until the ends of time.

As I walked amongst the humans of Port Angeles, I received many questioning gazes and confused thoughts. My eyes were a dead giveaway (forgive the pun) to my nature, there was just a natural predatory gleam to them and for some, it put them on edge, while others felt sympathy. Since Carlisle had revealed our species, I had found it a bit liberating and a bit intrusive. I could walk amongst humans now, but I wasn't free from their scrutiny and defensive violence.

I sighed. _Just another night gazing at things and people that will come and go…_

I needed something to make the time go by a little faster, but nothing seemed interesting enough to pursue. I kept my gait at a human's pace, trying to simulate some normalcy, and continued to meander my way through the city, not really looking at anything in particular.

Suddenly, I caught a whiff of human blood. An instantaneous jolt of venom pooled in my mouth, but I swallowed it down, and followed the scent, perhaps a good deed would occupy me for the rest of the night. It led me to an alley in the more industrial district of Port Angeles and a bag of human blood splattered among the cracks on the pavement. Survival instincts kicking in, I whirled around and detected multiple heartbeats everywhere. Random thoughts suddenly became blatently clear that these people meant me harm, and I also heard the ominous sound of a gun cocking. I prepared to bolt.

Before I could even reach the opening of the alleyway, multiple gunshots from different angles could be heard, almost deafening to my ears, and I felt a numbness flow through my legs.

I had been shot.

Vervain made its way through my system and I became paralyzed. I could see three men drop down from fire escapes of the surrounding buildings, and they descended upon me.

"It looks like we got one boys!" The leader was proud of what he had caught, and his followers quickly agreed. I knew not every human on the planet would be accepting of our kind, and this attack came as no surprise to me. I actually felt a little relieved to see my second death approach me.

_This is it; I'll finally be able to pass on to whatever awaits me, I'll have no more worries or cares._

The men prepared syringes, filling them up with vervain, and brought out rudimentary cutting tools: spades and knives.

I watched as a syringe pierced my arm; this was the insurance the men needed to keep me subdued to dispatch my body. I gazed up at the cosmos, reveling in the immense beauty of space one more time.

With alarming clarity, I heard a feminine voice ring out into the night, "This is the police! Drop your weapons and get on the ground NOW!"

I could see the panic overtake the features of my would-be executioners; Port Angeles had been very assimilating to vampires, we were treated as equals here. The men ran, with only escape and _not _returning to prison in their minds.

I heard footsteps nearing me, and I turned my gaze towards the source of the noise. I was met with the slight form of a girl with mahogany hair and chocolate eyes, eyes that were wide with anxiety and compassion.

When she finally reached my immobile form, she knelt down to gaze at my face. My body, still acting on instinct, caused me to growl involuntarily; I knew that my fangs had dropped as a form of intimidation. This didn't deter her though. She caressed my face and apologized, for what I didn't know.

She produced a cell phone from a pocket from her jeans, and placed a call to a woman named Tanya. After some heated words, she shut the phone and returned her attention to me. "Don't worry, I have some friends that will fix you up, they're coming to get us as I speak." She smiled kindly with a hint of sadness threatening to overwhelm her calm exterior.

Looking at her face I realized something, I didn't feel the crushing depression of loneliness anymore. The ominous absence of her thoughts also registered in my mind, but instead of a rush of anxiety, I felt intrigued. It shocked me, after all these years, I wasn't agonizing over what was to come in time, I was looking forward to it. With her, I had found a moment of peace.

* * *

A/N: Well, what did you think after getting your first glimpse into Edward's head? I know that the meeting wasn't exactly conventional, but that's what popped up in my head after I started typing... _Please_ review (I'm not above begging). Thanks for reading, until next time!

-gg


	4. Chapter 4: A Helping Hand

Hello to my loyal readers, and welcome to my newcomers! Well, I have to say, I think you guys play favorites, I have never received as many hits for my writing as I did for the last chapter. There may be a chance that you guys like Edward's POV more than Bella's... but that's just my opinion lol. Well, here it is, the rest of the night after Bella saved Edward. SM owns these characters, but I own the plot woot! And the fabulous Etta James owns the beautiful lyrics that make an appearance here as well. Copyrighted 2010 by geminigirl211990!

PS: Sorry for those of you who were looking for this chapter yesterday, FF had a major malfunction, and wouldn't upload. Oh well, better late than never, right?

PPS: Here's a story that I have been in love with since the beginning, Behind the Clouds by EchoesOfTwilight. Check it out!

* * *

**  
The Light in His Eyes  
**

_Chapter 4: A Helping Hand  
_

* * *

**BPOV**

As I 'flew' down the highway at 55 mph, I turned on the ancient radio that was on the console of my truck. A song that every love struck teenage girl went gaga over was playing. I let my thoughts wander as the singer crooned about her one true love.

_At last,_

_My love has come along._

_My lonely days are over,_

_And life is like a song._

I snickered quietly to myself; I had never had any experience in _that _department, apart from my frequent run-ins with Mike Newton. He was extremely persistent, almost to the point of stalking, but, thankfully, I thrust Jessica into the picture (I knew she had a crush on him), and they've been a couple ever since. _Oh well_.

I wasn't opposed to having a relationship, but I was always busy with my vampire equal rights acts and homework, so I didn't have an opportunity to pursue anyone. Not to mention, I didn't find one guy at my school even remotely interesting, most of the time, I wasn't surprised to see a group of them hovering around a worm somebody placed on a stick.

With my self-pity on my lack of romantic experience, occupying my mind, the drive to Port Angeles went by pretty quickly.

I pulled over into one of the parking lots in the more tourist-y areas, quickly locked up the truck, and ambled along the sidewalk, glancing in the windows of numerous stores. Trinkets and souvenirs were everywhere; obviously the day's business was a little slow. Seeing a café on the corner, I ducked in and ordered a small hot chocolate to go, trying to keep myself warm as the temperature steadily decreased as the sun went down.

After downing my beverage like I hadn't had a drink in years, I finally made my way to the local bookstore.

Stepping into the warm building, I let out a satisfied sigh as the scent of the books' pages hit me. No matter how stressed out I was, a book, even just its smell could soothe me. They were my therapy.

I spent my time walking up and down the aisles of the store occasionally pulling a book out to read its jacket, but nothing really caught my eye, until I hit the literature section. I was always a fan of the classics, you know, such as Jane Austen. Before long I had gathered four books that would probably keep me occupied for quite some time once I got them home, and made my way to the cashier. After making my purchases, I glanced outside to see that night had fallen over the city and the lights of the nearby shops were glowing lazily through the windows.

With one last gulp of air from the store in my lungs, I made my way out into the cool night. Walking down the street, my mind started wandering again, questioning my future, and whether or not I would be alone for quite some time, until I heard a loud ruckus jarring me out of my thoughts.

I looked around in confusion, I didn't really recognize where I was for a second, because I didn't travel to the industrial area of the city often. Suddenly I heard a man's voice exclaim, "Looks like we got one boys!"

I quietly rounded the corner of the street after the surprise wore off, and craned my neck to look into an alley where the noise was coming from. I saw three men with knives and a syringe filled with a liquid I would know anywhere, because I carried some around with me, approaching a prone figure on the damp pavement. Just as one of the men pierced the person's skin with the syringe, my hatred for these muggers knew no bounds.

These men knew that vampires were considered equal here, and what they were doing was murder, despite what some people thought

Knowing I couldn't just stand by and do nothing, I quickly came up with a plan that was half-baked, but it would do for now. _Come on Bella grow a pair and do something already!!!_ I sucked in a large breath, and with my loudest voice I called out, "This is the police! Drop your weapons and get on the ground NOW!"

Evidently, I can be quite convincing, because the three men immediately stopped what they were doing and made a run for it, sprinting away so fast, I was sure they could have competed in the upcoming Olympics.

After I had made sure that they weren't going to come back, as a precaution, I took out the vervain and dabbed some on my pulse points; my wrists and neck. Once I was sure that I wouldn't be a temptation, I timidly made my way to the figure on the ground.

When I was within arm's reach, I could clearly see the face of the vampire I had saved.

He was _gorgeous_. Light filtered from the nearby street lamp, illuminating his features. A shock of bronze hair messily framed his face, slightly draping over emerald green eyes. My _God_, his chiseled jaw was adorned with petal soft lips turned down into the most adorable pout.

Finally, after drooling over him for an eternity, my cerebrum kicked in. _Jeez Bella, the poor guy is paralyzed and could potentially be in pain, and you're starting to have dirty thoughts about his mouth!_

I knelt down and observed the fangs protruding from his mouth. When I leaned in closer he growled out a warning. I should have backed up, but I couldn't find it in myself to. Cautiously, I reached out and stroked his cheek, relishing the feel of his smooth, marble skin. I apologized to him, feeling awful that he had to suffer this kind of prejudice just because of what he was.

After my sympathetic spell wore off, I remembered that he was still paralyzed, and I had no idea how to help him. I had given money and my name as support for his kind, but I was clueless when it came to physical situations requiring medical care.

An epiphany hit me while gazing at him, and I fished out my cell phone to call the one person I knew who would be able to help. Dialing Tanya's number, I mentally prepared myself for her enthusiastic personality.

"Hey bitch, to whom do I owe this pleasure?"

"Ugh, Tanya, you know I hate it when you call me that."

"Honey please, it was a joke, where did your sense of humor go to?"

"It disappeared when I found a vamp being attacked in an alleyway and single-handedly saved him."

"SHIT! I love you sweetie, but damn that was stupid. You're not invincible. Bella that was extremely dangerous, what were you thinking!?"

"That he needed _help_? Look, now _I_ need _your_ help Tanya please, damn it, and I need it now!"

"FINE! fine! I'm on my way, jeez."

"Thanks, I owe you Tanya."

"Hell yeah you do. See you soon."

Once I hung up, I turned back to the vampire. He was still immobile, but was looking at me quite intensely, seeming to search for something. Trying to reassure him, I said, "Don't worry, I have some friends that will fix you up, they're coming to get us as I speak." I smiled, trying to put him at ease, since his fangs were still sticking out of his mouth.

The wait was relatively short, considering that Tanya drove like a bat out of Hell. When she arrived, she drove up in my convertible. I rolled my eyes, I was hoping to get a ride with her, since I was pretty far from my truck and it was late.

"Hey, thanks again."

"Yeah, yeah, of course I would help one of my best friends"

"Can I get a ride?"

"Sure, just hop in the passenger side."

As I was getting in, I realized _he_ wouldn't have a place to sit. I voiced my concerns with Tanya who responded with the most ridiculous thing I had ever heard.

"He'll just have to ride in the trunk." Upon hearing this, the vampire hissed.

Tanya rolled her eyes, and proceeded to haul the vamp up. "Oh, don't be such a _baby_." With that she picked him up and laid him in the trunk of the car.

I grumbled, and chewed on my lip, I didn't like how this trip was shaping up one bit. Reluctantly, I whispered an apology and got back into the passenger seat. I heard the trunk close and Tanya was beside me almost instantaneously.

She grinned and started the car, quickly navigating her way through the many streets of the city, and before I knew it, she was speeding down the highway back to Forks. As the miles flew by, I thought back over the last couple of hours, and how different my night was supposed to be in my plans; I suddenly felt very wary. Tanya didn't talk, she merely concentrated on the road, and I guess she sensed how deep in thought I was.

When we arrived at her house, she pulled into the driveway and turned to me. She quickly explained that her sisters were away for the week, spending time with their human boyfriends, to which I mumbled 'succubae' while shaking my head. She glared at me playfully and growled, eliciting a short bout of giggles out of both of us.

"Alright Bella, here's the plan, we'll take him to one of the spare rooms in the house, and I'll patch him up. I'll give you a call in the morning to tell you how he's doing."

I thought it over, while glancing at the digital clock on the dashboard, groaning quietly when it read past nine-thirty. Charlie would be getting home soon, and I didn't particularly want to explain what had transpired tonight.

"Okay Tanya, when you have him settled, can I say goodbye before you whisk me back home? Oh, and could you go pick up my truck and drive it to my house? I promise to pay you back!"

With a poorly acted look of concentration on her face, she had me wait out her answer for a good thirty seconds before answering.

"Yeah, of course I'll get your truck, but it's just so damn _slow_. And I don't need to be reimbursed; I owed you for making the family's transition into town easier, so we're even, okay?"

With an exasperated sigh, I agreed.

I open my door and went to the trunk when it popped open. There he was still paralyzed, but his eyes held a little bit of frustration, and that made me laugh quietly. When his eyes shot over to me, I immediately straightened my expression, but I couldn't hold back one last snort. His eyes softened and he took a deep breath. He seemed to enjoy whatever he smelled, because he closed his eyes and let out a quiet purr.

Tanya sighed while rolling her eyes at the show we were boring her with, and picked him up. I took her house keys out of her pocket and opened her front door. We trudged up the hallway stairs and walked into her guest room.

Tanya quietly placed him on the bed and gave me a pointed look before leaving the room. _I wonder what that was about…_ Shaking my head to clear it, I turned to the vamp, and told him that if he was going to stay with Tanya for a while he shouldn't be intimidated by her forwardness and chuckled. His eyes held the humor that his body couldn't convey through laughter. With a sigh, I bid him goodnight and reassured him that he was in good hands. I couldn't help myself when I ran my fingers through his hair before leaving the room. On a positive note, he didn't make any threatening noises, so I attributed it to gratitude.

When I hit the foyer, Tanya gave me the once over and led the way back to the car. She drove to my house, and I handed her my car keys once we were in the driveway, and gave her a hug. "Call me."

"You got it babe." She smiled and playfully told me to get the hell out of her car.

Opening my front door, I turned around and waved as she backed up. When she turned the corner, I closed and locked the door, rushed up the stairs, placed my books on my desk, and got ready for bed.

As soon as my head hit the pillow, I was asleep. For the rest of the night, my dreams were filled with dark shadows, coming at me from all angles, but a pair of piercing green eyes always kept them from harming me, acting as my silent protectors.

* * *

A/N: Well... what did you think? Remember, your opinions matter! The little worm on a stick bit was my nod to the movie that has capture hearts worldwide: Twilight. I thought it was one of the funniest scenes in that movie. What was yours? What were your feelings towards Tanya in this chapter? Mull these questions over before you review! Until next time guys!

-gg


	5. Chapter 5: Her Name

Hi guys! Sorry for the long wait, but I was busy with a family trip and organizing said trip, including hotels and packing, so I couldn't work on the story until now (I drove 200 miles today, just so I could get home; I'm tired!). Well, here's chapter 5, I hope you like it! Copyrighted 2010 by geminigirl211990 .

* * *

**The Light in His Eyes  
**  
_Chapter 5: Her Name_

* * *

**EPOV**

_Bella_.

The moment I heard her name in both Tanya's thoughts and out loud, I appraised the name. It suited the angel that had appeared out of nowhere in my most pivotal time of need.

I felt as if I owed her everything; especially my 'life'.

The hours after my personal savior left were filled with an unpleasant parallel of what my human childhood was filled with: hand feeding. Tanya was assigned the role of freeing me from the vervain paralysis induced by the bullet in my leg, and she accomplished this by flushing it out of my system after removing said bullet. She force fed me bags of animal blood that she had ordered from a butchery that she kept in cases such as this.

By diluting the vervain in my body with an excess of blood, until it ran its course in my system, it quickly released me from immobility. I quickly got up from the bed, full to the point of feeling a little slosh-y.

After being mothered by Tanya, I was able to move about her house as I got the tour. As I got my bearings, I fought the urge to question Tanya relentlessly about her human friend, and politely made conversation, trying to ascertain her history. The need to know Bella was overwhelming; she was a true anomaly among her kind, in a good way.

An eternity later, I saw my opportunity to finally discover the details I craved about my new acquaintance.

"So, Tanya, I was wondering about your friend, Bella, was it?"

"Pffft, please Edward, give me some more credibility than that, I could see that you were interested in her, the moment I got out of the car. You had these doe-like eyes whenever she was in your sight." She rolled her eyes dramatically, and sat on the loveseat in her living room.

Following her lead, I sat across from her in an arm chair. Knowing that I couldn't fool her now, I decided to just plow through the information as quickly and painlessly as possible.

"Fine, you caught me. Bella saved me tonight, in more ways than one. I'd just like to thank her…" I trailed off, not really knowing where I wanted that sentence to end at the moment, and refocused on Tanya's face.

She was smirking, and her thoughts were shouting in my head (after revealing my talents to her during the tour, Tanya took it upon herself to test how loud she could shout her thoughts to me). _Well…? What do you want to know?_

Sighing, I just spouted off the first thing that popped into my head. "Everything."

She laughed. _Okey dokey, let's see… well I've known Bella since my family moved here after our existence was revealed. She was the one that fought for us, trying to gain fair treatment for our kind._ She smiled and recalled her less than formal interview that Bella had conducted with her, the setting reflecting that of a human slumber party, not a get-to-know-you meeting.

"She wasn't frightened?"

_Not in the least, which is why I love her so much, she doesn't judge people off the bat; she digs deeper before making a decision. She truly is my best friend._

Considering these details, I considered my next question. "Where can I find her?" I just needed to see her again and repay her in any way I knew how.

_She's the police chief's daughter, so his house would be a safe bet _genius_._ She snickered at her own joke, then, she paused. "You're not going to start stalking her, are you?"

I was surprised that she would even think that, but considering the situation afterwards, I thought it was a fair question.

"No, I just want to drop by and thank her, get to know her better." I looked down, embarrassed for some reason.

"Well, if you do anything to hurt her, I _will_ end you." Tanya sent me her best death glare, and I understood what she meant by her statement, her territorial and protective instincts would be triggered by any threat posed to Bella, and the threat _would_ be eliminated.

I nodded, and then stood up, preparing to leave.

"You can stay here if you want." Tanya wasn't taking any chances with Bella, this invitation was not out of kindness; it was a way to keep me close, so she could keep an eye on me.

After debating it for a second, I quickly decided that it would be better if I was to start any type of relationship with Bella, it would be better that I relinquished my nomadic status, and 'settle down' for a while. I agreed graciously, and then spent the rest of the night gathering all of the information about Tanya, her family, and Bella's life that I could.

The next morning, I found myself in some new clothes after going into town to shop, and unreasonably anxious to see Bella. Tanya then walked into the foyer, and appraised my expression.

"Damn Edward, it's not like you're going to ask her to marry you, you just want to be friends!" Tanya exclaimed, adding air quotes around 'friends', and then quickly added: _For now._

I shot her a dirty look and a playful growl; she only laughed in response. Living with Tanya would be pretty entertaining, except when she brought back a boy toy of hers, then I would be hiking around the area for a while; I don't want those types of thoughts in my head again.

After exchanging a few more teasing jabs, Tanya directed me toward the police chief's house, and I soon found myself standing in the front yard, just staring at the door, trying to muster the nerve to knock.

As I was trying to get my act together, I gazed at the house.

It was quaint; and surprisingly pristine white, considering all of the mud that had been pooling around the foundation due to the almost constant rainfall. There were two floors, but I suspected the second floor was really the attic. There were a few large windows, but their views were obscured by numerous curtains.

Suddenly, I was jarred out of my observations when I heard a lot of noise from within the house. It sounded frantic, objects smashing together, and then I heard the rapid heartbeat and breath of whoever was inside. The person's heartbeat was becoming louder, until I heard the doorknob in front of me turn.

I was soon graced with the same heart-shaped face and chocolate eyes from last night, and I was stunned speechless. Bella's eyes were wide as saucers and her breath was coming out in huge puffs of smoke in the morning mist as she stood in front of me, frozen from complete shock to find someone standing in front of her.

With her heart thrumming a mile a minute, I was afraid she was going into shock. After a few tense moments, she seemed to regain her composure, but there was a fiery blush adorning her cheeks.

As before, I still couldn't hear anything from her mind, but I wished more than ever to know what was going on in there.

With quivering lips, she finally spoke, "Can I h-help you?"

Thinking that she already had the night before, laughter bubbled out of my chest.

Registering the noise, her eyes glazed over and she tilted her head to the side, as if trying to decipher something. Her movements were smooth and graceful; surprising me since I heard from Tanya that she wasn't exactly the most coordinated.

When I refocused on her now expectant face, I realized I had yet to truly answer her. "I, uh, I hope you remember me, you know, from last night. I just wanted to come by and say thank you." I couldn't believe I actually stuttered, I was so nervous, that had never happened to me before. _Why does she affect me so?_

A nervous chuckle escaped her lips at this, and she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and broke eye contact. When she returned her gaze to me, her blush became a deeper red.

"I know it probably sounds really lame, since I can't articulate in another more sophisticated way, but you're…welcome?" The ending came out as a question as her eyes remained trained on my face.

Her shyness was adorable, and I found myself smiling in response to her question.

Realizing that I hadn't introduced myself, I spoke quickly to amend that. "Oh, I'm Edward by the way." _Could I have sounded any more scatterbrained?_

With a quick gulp of air, she responded, "Hi, I'm Bella." She held out her hand, and I eagerly took it.

When our skin touched, I felt like my hand was on fire. Her pulse beat beneath her skin, and I unconsciously matched my breaths to match the rhythm. Her eyes widened further when our hands made contact and she glanced at them, then immediately looked at my face again.

I didn't want to make her anxious so I reluctantly released her hand from my grip. I had been enjoying the warmth from her hand as it seeped into my stone cold skin, but a handshake didn't linger too long...

After dropping her hand, she moved on to her next question. "Tanya sent you here, didn't she?"

Confusion swept over me; I didn't understand the significance of Tanya's interference was, I was completely stumped.

"No, well, yes, I mean; I wanted to see you again, Tanya was just my guide."

"OH! Thank God! I thought she would have told you all about me, for the sake of teasing."

My brow furrowed. "But she did tell me a little about you…" I trailed off at the look of horror that was slowly making its way on her face.

Her expression quickly shifted to amusement, and she giggled, "Don't believe everything she says, Tanya likes to tell tall tales."

"Oh, believe me, I know." I thought about some of the things that I had learned about Tanya's family, and shuddered, but I smiled at her sense of humor.

She quickly glanced at her cell phone, and she gasped.

"Crap! I have to get to school; I'm going to be late!" She turned around and reached for her book bag, and slung it over her shoulder. She then retrieved her keys from the hook next to the door and proceeded to lock up.

When she was done, she gazed upon the truck Tanya had retrieved during the night while I was still getting used to the house, and grumbled. "I'm never going to make it," she mumbled to herself.

Realizing her predicament, I immediately felt bad that I had made her late for school due to my visit, so I came up with a way to make it up to her. I knew she might not accept my offer, but it was worth a shot.

"Bella? Would you like a ride to school? I can guarantee that you'll get to class on time."

She seemed to contemplate it for an eternity to me, but in reality it was only a couple seconds. Finally, she gave me an answer.

"Okay, but just so you know I do carry vervain, so if you try anything funny, I will use it, got it? I don't mean any disrespect, but I haven't known you long Edward."

I nodded. "I understand Bella. You can call Tanya if you want, just as another precaution."

Following a quick phone call to relay her whereabouts, Bella waited anxiously for her transport. I turned around and kneeled, motioning for her to climb on.

Bella hesitated, and after some begging on my part, she hooked her limbs around my neck and waist. "Hold on tight," I told her as I took off in the direction of Forks High.

Flying through the town, I could hear her squeals of excitement, and I smiled in response, pushing myself faster until we ended up in the parking lot.

Bella was a little shaky after clambering off my back, so I held her steady once her feet were planted on the ground. She looked up, with a slightly dazed look on her face, and smiled goofily.

"We are so doing that again," she giggled. I chuckled and told her I would pick her up after school. I would take any opportunity I could to spend time with her; she was fascinating. She nodded a little dizzily, but made her way towards the classrooms. When she was safely inside, and the bell had rung, I turned around and saw the surrounding forest.

Since I had nothing better to do, I wandered through the trees, counting down the minutes until I could see _Bella_ again with a grin plastered on my face.

* * *

A/N: Well, we finally had some ExB interaction! I wonder what Edward will find in the woods... Please review; they make my day!!! :)

-gg


	6. Chapter 6: An Eden in the Trees

Well, after a couple of days of _trying_ to get this chapter up, I finally succeeded!!! Thank you to all of my readers (and a gold star to those who reviewed) and to the newcomers that added this story to their alerts/favorites. So, without further ado, I give you chapter 6!

PS I don't own Twilight, and that makes me sad, but I do own this plot, so I guess I'll live...

* * *

**The Light in His Eyes**

_Chapter 6: An Eden in the Trees  
_

* * *

**BPOV**

Well, after a ride like _that_ to school, I was going to be giddy for the rest of the day.

Unfortunately, I by the time I got to the hallway, I noticed Jessica staring at me and then shifting her glance to the parking lot with her mouth resembling car garage. _I'm pretty sure her jaw is going to unhinge any moment now._

Rolling my eyes and preparing my statement (I was going to be interrogated like a celebrity is: relentlessly about _one_ topic), I slowly made my way forward until I was right in front of her.

After about ten seconds of watching her ogle Edward in the parking lot, I couldn't take it anymore, so I cleared my throat to gain her attention. When she snapped out of her haze she blinked a couple of times, took a deep breath, and proceeded with the tsunami of questions that she had formed after gazing upon what had to be one of the most beautiful creatures to roam the earth.

"BELLA! Who was _that_!?"

"Jess, can we walk and talk, we only have a few minutes to get to class…" I trailed off while I watched her head bob up and down so fast I thought she would give herself a concussion.

While walking towards our homeroom I gave her the Cliff Notes version of my meeting with Edward, and my impromptu ride to school that left me flushed and jittery.

With every squeal, I began to regret telling her, but her excitement was slightly infectious, and it was nice to tell someone about my newest acquaintance. _Wow I'm being really social today_.

Classes droned on slowly, I had never been more relieved to hear the passing bell so much in my life. I couldn't concentrate during lunch either, Jessica had, of course, told Angela, and she wanted her own one-on-one with me. I had barely finished telling Angela (and the guys since they were sitting with us), when I began to hear the whispers of gossip and speculation.

_Great, just great._ As if I needed anything else that would put me in the center of attention (I was always pointed out as the _Chief's daughter_, something that would never fail to make me blush). I like to be low key, and this revelation in my life was not going to help me maintain my position in the high school pecking order.

After the most awkward lunch in the history of man, I was able to trudge my way back to the remainder of my classes. My earlier enthusiasm had waned quite a bit since this morning, I now felt weary. Of course, today was the day that my teachers decided to pile on the homework. The rest of the day was going to _suck_.

At last, the final bell rang and I was still being bombarded with questions, which I tried to ignore as much as possible. I slowly made my way back to the parking lot, when I realized I still didn't have a ride home.

Out of nowhere, Edward appeared amongst the sea of students practically sprinting to their cars to escape our educational prison.

I smiled when I remembered he was my transport, and made my way over to him.

He smiled down at me and took my heavy bag and slung it over his shoulder. Without the bulk of weight on my back I felt a lot better.

"Bella, if you don't mind, I found a place that I thought you would like to see, would you like to go there before I bring you home?"

After considering his offer, I was itching to see a place that brightened his eyes with excitement, so I told him yes. Of course, I called and told Tanya where we were going. I really hope that if we hang out more, I will be able to trust Edward enough to be alone with him on our own terms.

With my whereabouts accounted for, he took my hand (that jolt that I had felt earlier returned, much to my surprise and elation) and led me through the woods. He traveled slowly, matching his strides to my meandering gait. I, of course stumbled more than once, but he never said anything, he would just steady me, and we would continue on, until the process started all over again.

During our spur of the moment hike, he questioned me about my day, and I regaled him with my experience under the microscope.

"Oh Bella, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to cause trouble for you…" His brow furrowed, his eyes dimmed with sadness and repentance.

I squeezed his fingers, in reassurance. "Edward, it's _fine_, honestly, I would be surprised if I wasn't being focused on… Jess is kind of known for having a big mouth." I chuckled at my friend's expense and shook my head.

I glanced up, only to meet Edward's gaze and a crooked smile. Slightly conscious of his stare, I flushed and looked down.

His cool hand cupped my chin and brought my face back up. "Please don't look down, the only clue I have to what you're thinking about are your expressions," he said pleadingly.

I blushed even harder from that comment, but I obliged. When I kept my head up, he dropped his hand and faced forward once again, and came to a stop. The look on his face was intense and appreciative at the same time, like he didn't want to forget a single, minute detail of what he was looking at.

After studying him, I faced forward as well, and found myself gazing at an Eden in the middle of the forest. It was a meadow; full of wild grass and brightly colored flowers, there was a pile of rocks covered in moss that sat near a trickling little stream, creating music in the otherwise silent area surrounded by trees. I had never seen anything like this in Forks; it literally took my breath away. Noticing my heart's irregular rhythm, Edward squeezed my hand slightly to break me of the trance that the natural beauty of this little patch of heaven had placed me in.

"So, do you like my newest discovery?" His velvet voice echoed around the clearing, harmonizing with the stream, completing the overall tone of serenity already exuded from the meadow we were standing in.

Unable to form any coherent sentences at this point (I was still in awe of the gorgeous scene in front of me), I nodded a bit dazedly. This of course, caused Edward to chuckle, and the bell-like sounds started to echo around us once again.

When I finally regained my other motor functions, Edward led me to the dead center of the clearing. We sat down slowly, reverently, just absorbing all of the sights, sounds, and smells. Setting down my backpack, Edward turned to me and smiled.

"Well, while I was waiting for you to get out of school, I thought about going hunting, and during my excursion, I stumbled upon this place, and it reminded me of you, and I knew I had to bring you here to see for yourself." His face relaxed into a mask of pure contentment as he studied me in his meadow.

"Thank you for sharing this with me, I've never seen anything so beautiful in my life, let alone in Forks," I said, my voice trailing off into laughter in the end.

We spent the rest of the afternoon talking, just getting to know each other. Surprisingly, Edward and I got along real well, considering we grew up in totally different worlds. We just seemed to be on the same wavelength when it came to our humor and some of our interests, like literature, so we had a lot of interesting conversations.

Of course, the world isn't perfect, so we did have our own little disagreements, such as our opinions about music; although I enjoyed some of the music choices from Edward's time, he didn't necessarily agree with some of today's selections. This of course became a little spat and we ended up teasingly arguing each other.

As we talked I brought out my homework (ugh) and tried to finish it so it wouldn't be the reason for me to pull an all night-er. When Edward saw this, he graciously offered to help me, which I gratefully accepted, because I knew I wouldn't be able to do it on my own, I just couldn't focus on anything but him.

A few hours passed, and I was finally done with my homework. Edward turned out to be the best tutor a girl could ask for; he could effectively teach me what I was supposed to have learned _in_ class and he gave me numerous tips on how to remember the difficult stuff.

Of course since this is Forks, rain started to fall, so Edward quickly relocated us underneath a tree. Since we had to move at my sluggish pace, we did get a little wet underneath the shower falling relentlessly from the sky.

Despite Edward's concern that I would get sick, I insisted that we stay; I just didn't want to leave what I had deemed _our_ place. That thought alone caused me to internally roll my eyes at myself. _God, Bella. You guys aren't even good friends yet, and you're already designating areas of land as 'ours.' Obsessed much?_ Shaking my head, and returning to the moment, I followed Edward under a large tree.

Once we were comfortable again, we continued our 'friendship orientation' and tried to soak up as many details of the other's life as possible. I was thoroughly enjoying talking to Edward, something that wasn't usual for me. _Like I said, I like to be low key_.

Amongst my teenage ramblings, I learned a great deal about Edward.

Apparently, Edward was turned by _the_ Carlisle Cullen and had studied with him for numerous decades. This tidbit of information was one of the most amazing things I have ever heard. Of course, this led to another lengthy discussion of some of Edward's history (something I could spend days on end listening to because it was just so _fascinating_).

Sadly, all things must come to an end, and I finally glanced upward, taking in the darkening sky, and I regretfully told Edward it was time to leave. I was astounded at how much time we had spent together (I was in danger of starting dinner late); I hadn't even spent this much time with Jessica and Angela.

After packing up my school materials, I slung my bag over my shoulder, and pulled the hood on my jacket up. I looked up at Edward expectantly, and he smiled down at me, and, moving at his natural speed, hooked my arms around his shoulders and my legs around his waist, making me gasp in surprise.

Making sure I was secure one last time, Edward directed me to duck down and burrow my face into his shoulder, to keep water from hitting me in the face and causing my face to freeze in the dropping temperature. When I did, I was hit with the most delectable scent I had ever encountered. I couldn't name it, but would gladly keep inhaling it for the rest of my life.

He took off like a bullet, and in no time we were racing down the streets toward my house.

Once we reached my porch, Edward carefully loosened my grip on his shoulders and hips, and helped me get my footing back by keeping one of his arms around my waist. I was trembling from the high of our run, and from the chill of the air, but I couldn't regret spending time with Edward, I would endure being cold for a couple of minutes for him. When I felt my equilibrium return, I let him know that I was okay, and smiled up at him. His returning smile was dazzling; I could feel myself becoming overwhelmed by his presence.

"Thank you for an amazing afternoon, Edward, it was…magical." I blushed, I have no idea why, but the adjective I used just seemed… _inadequate_.

"No, thank _you_ Bella, your company was the highlight of my day." His expression through me for a loop; he actually looked…_embarrassed_. _Why on earth would he be embarrassed?_

After a few minutes of comfortable silence and staring at each other, Edward cleared his throat, and stepped a little closer. "Goodnight Bella, I'll be in touch," he whispered, and unexpectedly, leaned down and kissed my forehead. I could feel the heat rush to my face, and I murmured a quick goodbye in return.

Unlocking my door and stepping through, I turned around and graced him with one last smile. He returned one once again, and then disappeared.

As I was closing the door, my father's patrol car pulled up. After parking and locking the door, Charlie clambered up the steps, and greeted me with a phrase that heightened my anxiety considerably.

"Bella Swan, who was that _boy_ you were talking to?" _Gulp._

_

* * *

_

So, what did you think? What was your favorite part? Least favorite? Please leave a review, so I have something to read too!!! Haha that last sentence rhymed. Until next time!

-gg


	7. Chapter 7: Charlie and a Corpse

Hi everyone! Well, I really wanted to get this out on Pi Day, but one day late isn't so bad, right? Well, I guess I don't have any interesting things to tell you about my life at this point in time, so I won't bore you with a lengthy A/N. Remember, I don't own these characters, I'm just shaking things up in this alternate universe of mine...

PS Beware of the Ides of March!

* * *

**The Light in His Eyes**

_Chapter 7: Charlie and a Corpse_

* * *

**EPOV**

My departure from Bella's porch was swift; there was no other option. I could hear the questioning thoughts of her father, and I had a feeling that Bella would be more comfortable explaining my situation without my interference. I had a hard time focusing on anything but her, and that would not lead to a good first impression if I couldn't keep up an intelligent conversation with the man.

As I sped away from what could be described as the most fascinating person on the planet, I couldn't help but stay nearby to hear what she would say to her father. Despite her expressions, Bella didn't let on too much when it came to her thoughts as our day in the meadow wore on, and I was desperate for just a glimpse of what she thought of our visit besides the brief parting words that she shared with me.

"Well, Bella, who was that?" Through his thoughts I gazed upon an obviously flustered Bella, and I smiled at that because her expression was so adorable.

"Uh, well… I… uh…"

"Isabella Marie is that your _boyfriend_?"

"Oh my God, Charlie, no, of course not!" My chest twisted uncomfortably at these words, but I reasoned with myself. _You've only known her for two days, don't jump the gun Edward!_

"Well, I'm waiting for a more detailed explanation…"

"Ugh, fine! Can we just go inside first? It's freezing out here!"

"Let's go, and _no_ more stalling!"

I had to cringe, the chief wasn't going to make this easy for his daughter, and I felt bad for Bella. _Maybe I should go back…_ That thought was quickly wiped from my mind when I saw the determination in Bella's eyes as she prepared her speech for her father.

"Charlie, I know how you feel about boys, but Edward is a little different…"

"_Yeah_, I bet he is…" _He is a __boy__; they're all the same at this age…_

I saw Bella take a deep breath, and so began the tale of Edward and Bella…

I was in Tanya's living room as Bella was probably going to bed. I had listened up to the point where her father had gone into shock as to my species and demanded that we meet in the morning. Even though I had a physical advantage over him, I was still wary of the chief; he would do anything to protect Bella, and that included what he described as _justifiable murder_.

"So Edward, how'd it go?"

I glanced at Tanya; she was grinning so hugely, I thought for sure that her granite face might split in half. I rolled my eyes. _Well, since Bella was interrogated, I guess it's only fair that I am too._

I heaved a sigh and began. "It was great Tanya; we spent the afternoon getting to know each other in a meadow I came across while I was attempting to hunt in the forest. She told me about herself and let me help her finish her homework. It's not the romantic setting from a movie that you're picturing right now."

She quickly wiped away an overly sensual image of Bella and myself, and looked a little offended. "Geez Edward, _I'm_ not the mind reader here, I can hope! I mean, what else was I supposed to think?"

I sighed again, and started again. "I'm sorry, and I really don't have much to tell you besides that."

"Grr, fine. I never get to hear the latest gossip…" Tanya quietly griped to herself.

"So how was your day?"

Tanya's expression quickly shifted to one of mischief, and pictured in her mind, in disgusting detail, her activities with a man she had picked up in Port Angeles a couple of hours ago."

"_Ugh_ Tanya, I really didn't want to know _that_ badly!"

She burst out in laughter, but after a couple minutes of belly laughs, she became serious again.

_So, what are you going to do tomorrow when you meet Daddy?_

I groaned inwardly. _What __am__ I going to do?_ "Well, I am going to be as polite as possible, and that includes not delving into his mind if I can help it; I'll try to distract myself to an extent, just so I can talk to him like a… _normal_ person."

She snickered. _Yeah, good luck with that. No offense, but you are nowhere near 'normal.'_

"Thanks for the vote of confidence. Well, since you haven't eaten yet, you want to take a little trip to the woods?"

"Sure, sounds good."

With that, I tried not to give anymore thought to what tomorrow may bring as I raced through the trees with Tanya.

Well, D-Day had arrived. Tanya let early in the morning to drop in on her sisters to say 'hi' since they were staying with their boyfriends for the time being. This left me alone to fret over what to wear to officially meet Charlie Swan.

When the time came for Bella to go to school, I raced over to her house. I got there as she and her father were stepping out of the front door.

She looked beautiful in a teal sweater and black corduroy pants. Her hair spilled over her shoulders giving off a natural beauty that I could look at for hours.

Then my gaze landed upon the chief. He was a few inches shorter than me, but in today's world he would still be intimidating. He was in uniform and had a bulky belt containing the tools needed for his job, including a pistol, and I could also smell small vials of vervain on his person. His expression was calm and collected, except for the furrowed brow that indicated he was concentrating very hard.

I tried to keep out of his mind by focusing on multiple things at once and the distraction was enough that I could muffle his internal monologue out with the other thoughts floating around the neighborhood.

After some time of just standing there staring at each other, Bella finally had enough. She cleared her throat loudly to break us out of our stupor.

"Char- _Dad_, this is Edward."

He scrutinized me in such a way that I wanted to squirm, something I never thought a human could do to a vampire.

"Hello Edward."

I swallowed down my anxiety. "Hello Chief Swan."

And another lull fell between us. It was safe to say it was awkward, and I think Bella noticed, because she had a smirk on her face.

"Well, I'm off to school; you boys play nice now you hear?" And with that she promptly marched down the porch steps, got into her truck, and left us there.

We both had stunned expressions on our faces; apparently, the chief didn't think that Bella would leave us to our own devices too.

After the sound of her engine died out, we turned to face each other.

He cleared his throat pretty loudly, and tried to stand taller than he already was. Without the welcome distraction of Bella among the numerous voices of the nearby neighbors, I could catch more of his thoughts about me.

_Bella left me with…him? Great what do I say to this guy? Hey I support your species in this world of ours, but keep your mitts off my daughter! Pfft, like that will stop him._

I decided being direct would be the best approach; otherwise we would be standing here all day. "Chief Swan, it's a pleasure to meet you. I know that the circumstances about my appearance in Bella's life weren't exactly _ideal_, but I thoroughly enjoy spending time with your daughter, and I already consider her a good _friend_ of mine." I stressed the word friend, because in truth that's what we were, and his imagination was starting to get ahead of him.

"I... well that was unexpected. Look Edward, I know that Bella seems to be quite attached to you, but I don't know if I can agree with this relationship of yours. That's my little girl and I don't want her getting hurt; emotionally or physically."

I steeled myself for an automatic dismissal, but it never came, he took a deep breath and he formed his next statement cautiously. "_But_, I trust my daughter's judgment, she has always had a good head on her shoulders, and by saving you I think she showed me that you were worth the risk, so I can't _not_ give you a chance. What I'm trying to say is, I'll learn to trust you, and don't give me any reason not to, otherwise it _will _be the last thing you do." He finished his speech with a nod of the head to emphasize his point.

I nodded to show him that I understood and held my hand out to shake his. I agreed to join Bella and him at the local diner for dinner since he was (jokingly) 'giving her the night off.'

With that he left me to go to his job and I was free to wander about until Bella got out of school.

Like a man possessed, I made my way over to her school a few minutes before the classes were dismissed.

When the bell finally signaled the end of an educational day, I quickly traversed my way through the crowd, until I caught her scent (a delicious combination of freesia and strawberry) and stopped gazing in the opposite direction of the wind direction.

Bella was walking with her friend Jessica who had seen me yesterday, and or the most part was responsible for the wildfire of gossip about Bella and me. Both girls walked toward me, and when I caught Bella's gaze, I could only smile. Jessica was trying her best not to squeal like a fan girl gone wild, but her thoughts ran rampant. _Oh, my God, he is gorgeous. How the hell did Bella get so lucky!?_

I immediately tried to block her out by listening in to the remaining people's thoughts. The results were thunderous, but I really didn't feel comfortable listening to her more _intimate_ thoughts. After reaching them, I just stood there, trying to mask my discomfort and made polite conversation with her, but I really wanted to spend some time with Bella.

Finally, after an eternity of answering the questions fired off to me, Jessica regretfully (at least to her) had to leave, Mike (one of Bella's male friends I had learned from Jessica's ramblings) was giving her a ride and was impatient to leave what he considered 'hell on earth.'

As Jessica walked away from Bella and me, the wind suddenly shifted; the flow of air bringing with it a scent that every vampire would be familiar with: death and decay.

I stiffened, I wasn't sure why such a smell was near a high school, but I was sure that I didn't want Bella near it at all.

Calmly, so as not to startle Bella, I asked her to call her father and ask him to come to the campus. With a bewildered expression on her face, she complied, and Charlie said he would be right over.

By the time he had arrived with backup, I quickly rushed (in human speed) to his side.

"Chief Swan, I'm sorry to disturb you during work, but when I came to meet up with Bella as she left school, I caught a whiff of something I think you should look into." As I said this, I mentally envisioned myself crossing my fingers and hoping that he didn't think that I was some sort of stalker.

Upon hearing the seriousness of my tone and the actual words, his eyes widened with slight alarm. I could hear a slight skepticism in his thoughts as he considered my apparent fascination with his daughter may be my main motive, but his training kicked in and was determined to investigate any tip he received, even if it was from me. I explained a bit more and my concerns off Bella being alone. I heard the agreement of his thoughts, and he called one of the officers to stay with her while we investigated.

Bella didn't look too pleased with having a babysitter, but the authority in her father's voice was not to be disobeyed.

With his approval, I led him through the trees of the nearby forest toward the putrid stench. There, amongst the moss and broken stumps in what appeared to be a freshly made clearing, we found a decomposing body.

Charlie stopped dead in his tracks, and used his radio to call forensics on the scene. The body was mangled; bite and scratch marks everywhere. The markings were familiar. A vampire had done this.

* * *

Well, how was that for another chapter? I know a lot more people have taken interest in this story, and I would appreciate more reviews (if you give suggestions I might use them ;) ) so please don't be shy and hit that button! Thanks!

-gg


	8. Chapter 8: A Nightmare and a Cuddle

Hi everybody! Sorry that this chapter is a day late, I was pretty busy yesterday. I spent about five hours with my mom going to the clinic and getting medicine because she wasn't feeling well. Sometimes I think that doctors make us wait an eternity for them for fun... grr. Yeah, so it was a _long _day.

Thank you to all my readers and newcomers, you make this experience worth while. As always, I don't own these characters, lucky SM, I'm so jealous, but this plot is all me baby!

And here it is...

* * *

**The Light in His Eyes**

_Chapter 8: A Nightmare and a Cuddle_

* * *

**BPOV**

Officer Bradley was pacing in front of me as I sat in the back seat of my father's police cruiser with my feet hanging outside the car in the doorframe. He hadn't stopped pacing since Edward and Charlie had passed through the trees.

I was extremely nervous; something about the way Edward reacted when he scented something in the breeze made me freeze up instantly. Whatever it was, it forced him to call law enforcement, meaning one thing: danger. The sense of foreboding I felt from his expression sent a fierce chill down my spine.

When Charlie told me to wait, I wanted to investigate with them, being the curious person I am (plus I wasn't entirely comfortable with a run-of-the-mill cadet), and I was really aggravated that I was told to wait behind.

_Crunch, crunch, crunch._ His feet kept smashing little bits of gravel on the damp asphalt. _Crunch, crunch, crunch_ went his nose as I envisioned myself pummeling him repeatedly in response to the annoying noises he was currently making as I was anxiously waiting for Edward and my father. _When did I get so violent? Wait, why am I even contemplating this? Focus on the important things right now Bella, are Edward and Charlie okay?_

Finally, after an eternity of silence besides the most annoying crunching known to man, Bradley's wireless radio came to life. "Bradley, call for back up and the coroners, we found a body." My father's voice was almost robotic it was so devoid of emotion, and that scared me more than the fact that they had found a body.

Once Bradley confirmed that more law enforcement was on their way, Edward was by my side.

"Bella, you father wants me to take you to Tanya's house, he's going to be here for a while, and he doesn't want you to be alone while he takes care of this. He's already called her and she's set up her house for you." His eyes were alive with what I saw as hundreds, if not thousands of thoughts passing through them at once. If Edward, a _vampire_, was rattled by this, I thought I should be completely terrified.

I knew this, but when I was with Edward, I felt _safe_.

He seemed really anxious to get me out of there, so I agreed quickly to appease him. Instead of opting for my truck he rushed us out of the parking lot with me clinging on his back for dear life.

We made our to Tanya's street, and before I knew it, we were being ushered through her front door. Tanya seemed as anxious as Edward, her eyes constantly roaming around, and I heard her taking deep breaths as she shut and locked the door.

I was placed on the couch, and Edward took my backpack off and set it on the ground by my feet. He then sat down next to me, while Tanya situated herself in her chair across from me. The way they were acting was starting to scare me; I could hear my breathing and heart rate increase. There wasn't a doubt in my mind that the sounds were ricocheting in their ears, probably at an uncomfortable level.

Tanya took a deep breath and brought a smile to her face; it seemed a little forced. "Geez, calm down Bella, you're in a room with two almost indestructible beings, you're _fine_." I could feel myself calming down, and I began to snicker at how dramatic I was being. With that, the tension in the room seemed to evaporate, and I tried to make myself believe I was only visiting, not being babysat by two vampires.

I wanted to get to the bottom of this, to find out why a body was making them act this way. I mean, I know that Forks isn't really known for its severely high murder rate, and it's not exactly a huge city bursting with crime, but the vampires here weren't comfortable with it either. Something pretty, um, _unique_, for lack of a better word, had to have happened in order to have so much attention drawn.

Closing my eyes, I took a deep breath, and then opened them while I started speaking. "Okay you guys, _what_ is going on here? No offense, but don't traditional vampire legends involve them _leaving_ bodies behind? If you two aren't comfortable about this discovery, then what is the big deal?"

I shifted my gaze back and forth between the two of them, and both off them seemed at a loss of words; something I found extremely odd for the two of them. Their lack of response to what I just said made the light bulb over my head light up.

"It was a vampire, wasn't it?" Tanya's eyes widened and Edward's body next to me seemed to turn to stone: rigid and unmoving.

Tanya seemed to war with herself, and sighed. Getting impatient I decided to go in for the kill, using one of my patented guilt trips.

"Tanya, _please_. Please tell me what Edward and my dad found, since _he_ won't tell me." I said this in a quiet, pleading voice, while sending a scowl in his direction. I know I was laying it on thick, but I didn't want to left in the dark about this.

With a quiet groan, and an eye roll, Tanya finally relented. "Oh quit pouting and giving me those puppy dog eyes. You win! I'll tell you!" I smiled smugly to myself; I could get a _vampire_ to crack just by begging. It boosted my ego considerably.

Edward seemed to thaw out, but he growled at Tanya. "Tanya, Bella's father explicitly told us that we couldn't give out the details; they're part of the investigation now."

I bristled at this, and turned to face Edward. "Edward, I know that you're trying to make a good impression with my father, but I need to know this. This situation involves my father, vampires, and it happened near my school. Oh, and I also want to know because I'm nosy." Edward smiled at my last line, I could see a bout of laughter try to escape, and I guess my attempt at humor won him over after a brief pause, because he sighed, glared mockingly at me, and then gave me his rebuttal.

"Okay Bella, I'll go along just this once, your logic is just so _sound_." He snickered. He continued, "But, if the chief finds out about this, I _will_ find you." He tried to look threateningly at me, but the smile on his face ruined the whole effect. I ended up laughing right in his face, loudly and long.

"You think that's funny, do you?" The next thing my senses registered was the fact that I was on my back on the couch, with Edward leaning over me, his hands poised over my ribs. I was now regretting the fact that I told him that I was extremely ticklish when we spent the afternoon in the meadow.

I put on my best glare, and growled out, "Don't even think about it…" This, of course didn't deter him, and I soon found myself gasping for air and squealing as I was tickled relentlessly.

Finally, Tanya had enough of our antics and decided to break it up the best way she knew how: embarrassment. "Okay you two, no necking on my couch!" We abruptly stopped all movement; like I said effective.

I quickly took in the position Edward and I were in. I was still pinned underneath him; my attempts of getting the upper hand in this little tussle had been vain. His torso was pressed against mine, his weight keeping me still. I had my hands on his chest in what I knew was a futile attempt to get him off of me. _His _hands were still gripping my ribcage, still clinging to me, still searching for a spot to tickle. I quickly glanced up at Edward's face; he seemed to be taking in our positions too.

After a few seconds, I remembered Tanya's words and promptly blushed. Edward, on the other had seemed to be frozen in time, so I encouraged him to move by clearing my throat and giving him one last shove.

He quickly got the hint and moved back to the other side of the couch. We tried to regain our composure while Tanya sat there with a Cheshire grin on her face. I chanced a look at Edward and he was back to his usual, calm, cool, and collected self.

_My_ composure, however, was shattered. I could feel my face heat up, I'm pretty sure my blush traveled to my toes.

"Well, if you're done, Bella, we need to get you fed and your homework done, otherwise your dad will flip his shit." With that, Tanya grabbed my hand, and hauled me to her kitchen table. "Just start your assignments, and I'll cook, but knowing me, be cautious when you try it. Remember I haven't had to cook for anyone really, but my boyfriends say the food is _usually_ good." She grinned conspiratorially and rummaged through the groceries she had purchased, finding something she said Charlie found suitable to eat.

_Great, I'm going to die of food poisoning._ I rolled my eyes and glanced at my worksheets. Edward eventually came over to help me, speeding up the process up nicely, while Tanya concocted something that _appeared_ edible.

Throughout the wait for the 'food,' we all chatted about trivial things; I think that they didn't want to delve into the implications of having a vampire attack in Forks, and on some level I was grateful (I'm not really an adrenaline junkie), but I was mostly aggravated. I wanted answers, _now_.

By the time Edward and I had finished my daily dose of busy work, I had a steaming plate of pasta in front of me, accompanied with a salad, breadsticks, and a coke. _Olive Garden, eat your heart out,_ I thought, before taking my first tentative bite. After surviving the first swallow of surprisingly delicious food, I cleared my plate in a miraculously short period of time.

Tanya had adopted a 'mother' persona during the time it took to cook the meal, and she was starting to take it to the extreme. "Alright you, it's a school day tomorrow, and I want you out of this house early, so I can start having fun again, if you know what I mean." Her tone had started out sounding so parental that it was kind of scary, but the teasing alleviated any nightmares I might have had about her actually trying to raise me. "Off to bed, while Edward and I discuss more interesting things than you."

With an over-exaggerated sigh, I trekked my way to the guest room. I looked through the clothes Tanya had, and found a more, um, _modest_ set of pajamas. Some of her selections were a little, to risqué for my taste, so I went with the ever popular T-shirt and sweats. I quickly changed and used the brand new toiletries that Tanya had purchased for me, and climbed into bed. I set the alarm clock and turned over, closed my eyes, and waited for sleep to take me.

* * *

_I was slowly making my way through the trees, amazingly, I hadn't tripped over anything, and my ankles were still intact. I had no idea where I was going, but the need to get out of the trees was becoming almost painful. A sense of danger was weighing down on me, making my breaths short and staccato._

_I glanced around, my eyes roaming around, searching for the source of my panic, but nothing registered in my sights._

_Thump._

_Thump._

_Thump._

_My heart was in my throat, something told me the danger was near. I tried to run, I really did, but being the klutz that I am, I wound up on my knees, trying to __crawl__ away from my terror. I had only traveled a couple hundred yards, before I saw it._

_A shadow flashed among the foliage around me, and I froze on the spot. I knew it was useless to move, it would find me. _

_Hopeless. Absolutely hopeless._

_The shadow shot out of the trees, and pounced on me. I couldn't struggle, it wouldn't let me. I was surrounded by darkness; I couldn't sense anything but pain. Suddenly, I was staring into a pair of ice blue eyes._

_I couldn't escape its gaze. And then I knew it was over._

_I could do nothing but scream._

* * *

I felt cool hands stroking my face, and I heard the gentle cooing of my name.

"Bella, Bella, wake up. You're fine, it's okay; I'm here. You don't have to be scared." It was Edward, with this realization, I calmed immediately. My heart, which had been beating a mile a minute, slowed down to a relaxed pace again. I could hear myself panting, but ever so slowly, my breathing returned to normal.

I opened my eyes, to see Edward's green gaze looking over me with great concern. I quickly glanced around myself, taking in the darkened room, with no sign of the blue eyes anywhere. His hands never stopped stroking my cheeks, my chin. I reached up, and curled my hands around his wrists, and his hands stopped their movement.

"Bella?" His expression became a little confused; I think he was worried that I was losing my mind.

I closed my eyes as I swallowed down the lump in my throat that had developed during my unconscious terror, and looked at Edward in the eye again.

"Thank you. Thank you for being here. I don't mean to be so forward, but will you stay?" I knew by the end of my question, my face was tomato red. I could just imagine Tanya listening to this conversation, '_Get it girl!_ _Way to go Bella, I didn't know you had it in you!'_ I couldn't help it; like I said I felt safe with Edward, hopefully it would carry over into my dreams too.

That all-powerful crooked smile returned and his eyes shined. "Of course, I'll always be here for you, Bella."

With that, I relaxed even further into the bed, and I tugged Edward forward, blushing all the while, and he let me.

He let his arms cage me to the mattress, and gently leaned down and settled himself, laying his ear on my chest above my heart. "Go back to sleep, Bella. I promise to keep the monsters away." I smiled sleepily, his voice lulling me back into unconsciousness.

Right before completely succumbing to sleep, I could feel him shift. His face glided up my chest, and I swear I could feel his lips touch under my jaw, before I blacked out.

* * *

"Bella, I know you're still probably tired, you told me so a couple of minutes ago, but you really need to get up for school." I could hear the humor in his voice, and the implications of what he just said hit me. I groaned and begged him to tell me what I said in my sleep; the jerk that he is, Edward just smiled mischievously and then promptly disappeared from the guest room.

Grumbling under my breath, I threw back the covers and headed to the door. Just then I ran into Tanya who was taking this whole 'responsible babysitter' to a new level.

True to her word to the Chief, Tanya took the liberty of treating me like her child, getting me showered and fed (she _tried_ to hand feed me) for school. She wouldn't stop fussing over me, which caused a tantrum worthy of a two year old to erupt, which ended when she burst into hysterical giggles and just shoved me out of the house with Edward. "Be safe kids!"

_What sentimental last words Tanya_. I rolled my eyes at Edward, and he laughed, finding more humor in this situation than what was safe for him.

Foregoing Tanya's car, I jumped on Edward's back, and we sped off to school.

People say that school can be a form of prison, but this day, it was a circus.

Everyone; and I mean _everyone_ was freaking out about the murder so close to school grounds. Overnight, restrictions and new protocol was in place to ensure the safety and the students, and when I say this, I mean the rules already in place were just enforced more strictly. The major change, however, was the posting of a police officer around the campus for added 'security.'

Of course the guys in our group were excited that something they considered more interesting than the goings on at school. They wouldn't shut up about it. Since I had 'connections,' I was bombarded with questions; I couldn't divulge anything though, so the interest in me quickly died down, and the speculation began.

The most prevalent theory amongst the student body (based on Jessica and Angela's connections in the gossip food chain) was that one of the 'people friendly' vamps that lived nearby snapped and had a, uh… _relapse_ of some kind and was too chicken shit to fess up to it.

Frankly, this was the most logical to my knowledge as well, since neither Edward nor Tanya would share their opinions with me. This frustrated me to no end.

With all the gossip aside, it was a typical day in Forks High: lectures, assignments, and the ever growing resentment for those assignments by the students. Once I hit the parking lot after my last class, I scanned the parking lot for Edward.

Amongst the packs of teenagers leaving for the day, I spotted his wind-blown copper hair. With a smile on my face, I walked forward (and only stumbled twice thank you) and met him near some already vacated parking spots.

He smiled down at me, and asked the question I had been waiting to hear all day, "Are you ready to go Bella?" I couldn't jump on his back fast enough; I just wanted to get out of there.

"Right now, I'll go anywhere with you Edward." I smiled as the world blurred before my eyes, and we were off.

* * *

Oh, by the way, this is the largest chapter to date! 1000 words more than usual, I feel so accomplished. Now for my favorite part, what did you think about this chapter? Any guesses as to where this is going? Did you enjoy reading it at all? I would really like to know, so please review. Thanks!

-gg


	9. Chapter 9: Closer

Hey guys! I'm sorry that this chapter is a little late, I had a dentist appoinment this week (which was not fun at all) and a lot of preparations to get my sister ready for her upcoming prom... so yeah. Thank you to all of my readers and a special thank you to those who reviewed. I had ten reviews!!! That totally made my day to see that, so hopefully we can keep that trend going, right? As always I own nothing Twlight, but I own the plot. Well, here's chapter 9!!!!

**

* * *

**

**The Light in His Eyes**

_Chapter 9: Closer_

* * *

**EPOV**

That first night watching over Bella was by far one of the best in my very long non-life.

Tanya and I were discussing the implications of a murder committed by a vampire so close to this town when we heard her. She uttered a bone-chilling wail for help, and Tanya told me to tend to her. _It's not like I would be able to stop you anyway, you love-struck fool_.

With no further encouragement, I bolted to the guest room and found a heart-clenching scene before me. Bella looked too small in the bed as she tossed and writhed, being held captive by her own unconscious mind. She was making little whimpering sounds and her eyes were fluttering back and forth underneath their lids as her nightmare went on.

I didn't hesitate, she had saved me in such an important way, the least I could do for her was to ensure that she had a good night's sleep.

After waking her up, she clung to my wrists a pleaded with me to stay with her. I couldn't refuse. So with a final soft kiss to her jaw I settled my ear above her heart and battled her demons throughout the night for her.

The following morning had been _interesting_. Tanya did her very best to annoy Bella and me while we prepared for Bella's departure for school, but I found Bella's frustrated face too amusing to find Tanya irritating.

I rushed Bella to school and met up with Tanya and we left to speak with Chief Swan at the police station. We spoke to him about our theories of why this murder happened, and based on our experience and some of Tanya's contacts, we figured it was just a nomad that didn't have the same values as us, stopped for a meal, and moved on.

I had been a bit surprised that the Chief had supported me so quickly in ensuring Bella was taken care of while he worked, and I asked him about it. He simply replied that if Tanya trusted me with Bella, he should too. I didn't want to question him too much about this, so I accepted his simple logic and moved forward.

That was a few weeks ago, and so that brings me to our present situation. Although there hadn't been anymore nomadic activity, Tanya, the surrounding vampiric vegetarian community, and I kept our eyes peeled for anything out of the ordinary (even for us). Nothing besides the normal mediocre human crimes of vandalism, theft, and tomfoolery due to intoxication, really jumped out at the law enforcement, so everyone relaxed a bit.

Even though our focus had shifted back to the daily goings on, Tanya and I remained on alert somewhat on some level. During these past weeks, Bella and I have gotten closer as friends. I swear it's like we've known each other since the dawn of time. Tanya wasn't oblivious to this development, and didn't hesitate to mention this to me every chance she got.

_Getting kind of cozy aren't you?_ This was an almost constant question/taunt running through her mind along with something I did find _annoying_. _You love her! You love her!_ I swear, she was like an ancient (and I stress _ancient_) toddler. Not to mention, if I could still blush, I would have, considering some of the things she imagined Bella and me doing.

Truthfully, I knew from the moment I set eyes on her, I knew Bella was something special. One look into her chocolate eyes presented me with limitless possibilities of a future that I hadn't even wanted before I met her. Now, all I could think about was being with her, making sure she was happy, and just sharing _everything_ with her.

My feelings for her over the last couple of weeks began to deepen, and my thoughts toward this friendship, although it was one of the best things to happen to me in my existence, found it was… lacking.

I found that I wanted more from Bella than what she was already giving me, the selfish beast that I was. She was the perfect match for me, a concept that I believed would never occur, cementing my existence as a solitary being, but she was a living contradiction that I welcomed into my non-life, shattering my beliefs. I wanted her as a lover, as well as a friend, and I didn't know how to proceed after I realized this.

Of course, I hoped that these new feelings weren't just one-sided on my end, and there had been some suggestion that there was something there on Bella's part. Every once in a while, I would catch her looking at me, a small twinkle in her eyes conveying some message that I wasn't able to decode. She also seemed to rely on being close to me for a source of comfort.

After her first night at Tanya's house, she visited more often, and her father, sometimes grudgingly, let her stay the night. I knew that Chief Swan was worried about another man in Bella's life and whatever shenanigans we 'kids' could get into, but I would never betray his trust _that_ way (not to mention it was embarrassing just contemplating something a little more… _intimate_ at this point and time). During these visits, we always seemed to gravitate towards each other, and on many occasions Tanya would relay what she was seeing to me, if her teasing just wasn't enough for her.

The way Bella and I moved around each other was like an almost constant dance, always changing direction, but maintaining a closeness that conveyed to anyone who saw us together, that there was a deep bond between us. Her friends noticed almost immediately, when I came to pick her up at school; it was always a topic in question in their minds, yet they never voiced them in front of me, probably to save Bella the embarrassment.

Speaking of Bella's friends, I did maintain a relationship with them as well. We had gone out with her friends for movie nights and cram sessions for tests that their educational curriculum deemed _necessary_ for their futures, but to be quite honest, I don't think that most professions would require finding 'x' in a daily context.

Angela was one of the kindest humans I had ever encountered. She rivaled Bella in her selflessness, and empathy towards others. We got along quite well; she had the type of personality that would put anyone at ease, so it was hard not to like her.

On the other hand, Jessica was a little more to contend with, when it came to her thoughts. Despite the fact she was attracted to one of Bella's other friends, Mike, she was still captivated by the vampiric allure I apparently 'broadcasted everywhere.' She was also a little more calculating when it came to social settings, since she considered herself a little more popular than some of the other members of the group. Her mind was always fluttering with analyses that would put a psychiatrist to shame, making sure that she always left a positive impression on people. I tried to stay out of her head, it reminded me too much of Carlisle and his usual repertoire of medical reviews of patients, and that caused an ache in my chest that didn't let up for hours at a time.

The guys in the group were a little to… uh, _frisky_ for my taste, so I tried to maintain my focus on Bella, because I really didn't want to know how nice the waitress' chest was, or the more inappropriate thoughts about their female friends. Despite their hormone-driven thoughts, Eric, Tyler, and Mike seemed nice enough, if you like watching pornography almost constantly.

Anyway, like I said, Bella and I were becoming very close, and I felt being _closer_ would be even better.

I even had the pleasure (?) of celebrating a rite of passage with Bella. I had witnessed her become an adult in the eyes of society. I got to see Bella act like the adult she had become on her eighteenth birthday when she threw a tantrum over having a small birthday party thrown for her by Angela at Tanya's house (it had the most room, and with a vampire cleaning up afterwards, it wouldn't be too much of a hassle to party there). Of course, no one was deterred by her rage, and we ended up having a good time.

That was a very memorable night for me as well, because I got to see Bella smile, and happiness radiated through her eyes. I finally convinced her to take a present that Tanya and I had bought together for her. It was a small ring with a moon stone and I had an inscription placed inside the band reading: _more than my own life_. That inscription summed up everything that she meant to me. She was worth more than my 'life,' and to be quite honest, I believe that I loved her than my own 'life.' I don't think that she actually saw the inscription, though, she, of course, focused on the stone. It took a good thirty minutes of Tanya and me, drilling into her head that it wasn't worth an extravagant amount of money before she finally slipped it around her finger.

She told me that it was the best present someone had ever given her once all of her guests called it a night and went home. Ever since that night, she had never taken it off. I always caught her looking at it, usually watching how light bounced off of the stone and smiling at it.

After her party, she started to tease me to a level that rivaled Tanya's about how she was going to have to get me into the rated R movies when we went out since I was still a 'minor.' To this, I shot back that I had about eighty years on her, but she merely rolled her eyes and told me that was irrelevant, because I looked so young.

This morning, I waited for Bella at her house so I could drop her off at school before I went hunting in the forest a couple of miles away from the campus.

Chief Swan joined me on the couch, and we attempted to have some small talk, but just like a typical teen movie, we were still in the 'testing the water' phase, so the conversation was short, and the topics were shallow, but there was no real tension between us. I could tell, he thought of me as the guy trying to 'take his little girl away from him.' _I don't give a damn if she's eighteen, she'll always be my daughter._ I understood his apprehension about me, and with the way my feelings were headed I sympathized with him even more than I had already.

After the somewhat friendly conversation, his thoughts became terse, and thankfully, Bella made her appearance, so I was able to excuse myself and get into her ancient truck. Despite the fact that it was old and slow, I had grown attached to Bella's truck (not to the magnitude she had of course), because it allowed me to spend more time with her.

The drive to school was filled with music from the radio, and light-hearted bantering between friends. Like I said, we just got along so well, it was like she was made for me.

Sadly, the drive went by too quickly for my taste, but she needed to be in school, so I reluctantly let her go with a simple goodbye and a smile, before turning toward the trees looking for my next meal.

* * *

After a few hours of hunting, I finally felt full, and sat down in the middle of the forest, contemplating what my next move would be, since Bella wasn't allowed out of class.

Unable to take the loneliness without her, I decided to call Carlisle and the rest of the family. Taking out my new cell phone, I scrolled through the contacts and called 'home.'

Speaking of the phone, it also held some fond memories for me. My mind wandered into the past while the phone rang.

Bella _and_ Tanya had insisted that I get a new phone, since I hadn't bought a new phone in almost five years. According to both of them, it was time for a new model 'to keep up with us young folk,' because according to Tanya, 'it was almost as old as the dinosaurs.'

Well _that_ shopping trip was full of Tanya's sarcasm, and Bella's encouragement, so I couldn't say I regretted the experience. With a new phone in hand, I spent about an hour with Bella learning the logistics of its functions. In truth, I could have read the manual in about two minutes, and probably could've taken the phone apart and put it back together with no help at all, but I wanted to spend time with Bella, and through this common activity, learn something about her, because she fascinated me with how her mind worked when she told me what she was thinking. She thought differently than everyone else, and I eventually attributed this difference in her ability to remain silent to my gift.

After a couple rings, I heard through the phone speaker the other phone connect to mine. With a calm and cool manner, the voice of my _father_ echoed through my ears.

"Hello, son, long time no speak." Despite the higher rank I placed upon him in my existence, he still treated me as a long time friend, and in retrospect, I guess it was a more fitting title to our relationship than creator and creation.

"Hello Carlisle." I was suddenly overcome with homesickness at hearing his voice; something that hadn't really troubled me in the past, but its intensity shocked me.

"Well, Edward, where are you? The family hasn't heard from you for quite some time, and Alice refuses to divulge any of your activities, but she walks around with a Cheshire grin and a smugness radiating from her, at least that's what Jasper says."

I laughed, thinking about my 'sister,' and the things she must have seen in that head of hers. Alice was gifted like I was when we transformed; she had what humans would call ESP, seeing the future. Jasper, her husband/boyfriend/fiancé/boy toy depending on where we lived before our existence was made public was just as intriguing as Alice. Apparently, Jasper was good at reading people's emotions in his human life, and it intensified into empathetic abilities after his change. Together, they made quite an odd couple, but their different abilities and personalities seemed to balance each other out, so in a strange way they just…_fit_.

Without any further encouragement, I regaled Carlisle with my current whereabouts and what I had been up to these past couple years. Of course, I had to mention Bella; it was as if nothing was complete in my world unless she was there.

For the most part, Carlisle was silent while listening to my tale, but as I finished, he showered me with paternal reassurance and pride, as if I was truly a teenager harboring his first crush. Honestly, I guess Bella would be considered my first crush, even if I wasn't human any more.

Sadly, we couldn't stay on my favorite topic forever, and I did tell him about the nomad that had passed through the town. At this, he became quite concerned; he saw this as a small step backwards in his overall plan to integrate our species into the human world peacefully.

After reassuring him that it was just a random occurrence, I was treated to the family activities revolving around the vampiric political agenda, until Carlisle was called away to fulfill his diplomatic duties.

After hanging up, I looked at the clock on the tiny screen. My eyes widened, I was running late; I wouldn't be there waiting for Bella when she walked out of her last class. I pocketed the phone and rushed through the trees, weaving through them, until I was met with a sight that was marred by terror.

One of the cars was traveling way too fast for a turn, and fishtailed, heading right for Bella and her friends. Of course, Bella was walking away from her group towards her truck, dead center into the car's path.

Every thought flew out of my head as I started sprinting towards Bella. As the car's breaks stopped the tires from spinning, a horrific squealing sound emitted and echoed through my ears, if my eardrums could be damaged, they would have been destroyed. The squealing and sudden movement to the side of her, Bella looked up in shock.

In a fraction of a second, I was by her side and yanking her out of the way, keeping my arm around her as my other had thrust forward and pressed against the hood of the car, denting it while Bella and I slid across the pavement from the car's momentum.

Once the car came to a complete stop, I gingerly removed my hand from the hood, and stepped back with Bella in my arms, getting her away from the danger.

When I felt we were a safe distance away from the car, I placed Bella on her feet again. I focused on her face, pale (even more pale than usual) with shock.

Placing my hands on her cheeks, I tried to get her dazed eyes to refocus on reality. "Bella?" Her eyes which had been darting around snapped to my face and recognition dawned on her. Her body was quivering; the adrenaline making her nerves respond like live wires, but as I held her, the shudders ceased.

Suddenly, her arms flung towards me, her hands fastening themselves onto the collar of my shirt. To my utter amazement, she quickly pulled me to her and then I felt it.

Her lips were on mine.

* * *

So, did you like it? Questions? Comments? Concerns? All you have to do is press that little review link... Thanks!!!

By the way, I've been reading this awesome fic for some time now, so if you like to laugh please check out Work in Progress by Araeo!!!

-gg


	10. Chapter 10: Unwanted Discussions

Well would you look at that? An early update! Thank you to everyone who put this story on their alerts, as well as the readers that reviewed the last chapter, they make me smile.

Here's a random tidbit that happened to me today: while dropping my sister off at the train station, I saw a guy with bowling shoes walking around and Jesus reincarnated as a hippie boarding a train. It made my day!

Oh, and I also saw _two_ major accidents on my way home. It looked like everyone made it out okay though, so please drive safely people!

As always, everything Twilight is SM's, but I own this AU though (wow that's a lot of power; it's kind of scary).

Well on with the show guys!

* * *

**The Light in His Eyes**

_Chapter 10: Unwanted Discussions and Reunions_

* * *

**BPOV**

That's _it_! I've had it!

I knew for quite some time that I was beginning to think of Edward as more than a friend, and it kind of terrified me at first. I _don't_ do that, I was never known for drooling over guys, but with Edward it was different. The way we got along so well, despite the _major_ age difference, and the way he always seemed to look out for my well being, holding me upright when I would have tripped over air, we just clicked.

Of course I never said anything about it to him personally, because I was afraid he wouldn't see me in the same light, but I had told Angela (I needed to vent to someone). She was ecstatic, gushing over how she had known all along that there was something there between us, just by seeing how we looked at each other and listed off other things as having a more romantic connotation than I had previously thought, and that brought about a blush that would put a lobster's shell color to shame.

Well after that fun-filled giggly girly talk, I became even _more_ aware of Edward, if that was at all possible. I would notice other things; his hand in mine or on the small of my back as we walked, or that his eyes never strayed far from me for too long, always searching my face. I knew I could attribute this to his attempts to deciphering my thoughts; not knowing what I was thinking must be torturous to him, but the seed of doubt had been planted, and now I was second guessing that assumption.

Today at school, everything had blurred into the monotonous pattern of bells, standing, sitting, and writing, that is until I attended my history class. Although we had passed the pro-vampiric rights unit, we were currently studying the opposite movement, and my teacher had taped a segment of the news from the night before to share with us and to quiz us on how someone who opposed vampire rights would respond.

As soon as the tape was in, the outside world ceased to matter to me, because the story being told was horrifying to be honest. The reporter on the screen was from the Midwest, and was near the Canadian border, looking a little wary being outside. The background was littered with police cars parked around a neighborhood, their lights still flashing in the night air. The houses all had their lights on and you could hear tearful people outside of the camera's shot, and you could hear someone trying to give a statement to an officer, but was so distraught that they couldn't. However, there was one house that had been taped off and you could see the outline of an ambulance in its driveway.

After receiving his instructions through the feed in his ear, the reporter began his tale.

"_At about 8:30 PM the house you see behind me was broken into, and the occupants inside were brutally attacked. Neighbors around the block state that they hadn't seen anything suspicious before the break in, and didn't hear anything, except for when the attackers fled, when a visitor dropped by and knocked on the door._

"_Police officers say that this stroke of luck of having someone interrupt the attack probably saved this family's lives._

"_Unfortunately for the family, this crime probably won't go away due to the controversial topics associated with it. This family was violently attacked by a band of vampires looking for a meal, and not the kind that the famous Carlisle Cullen would like them to eat._

"_Protestors of vampiric rights have jumped at this opportunity to voice their concerns of what to do about this type of behavior and how vampires should be restricted in their rights to better control them if they insist on such violent tendencies. Back to you…"_

This segment sparked a class-long debate that became quite heated. I left the classroom with a very flushed face; I tried to hold my tongue against some of the more uh… _colorful_ words I wanted to spew at some of my classmates, and that created a noticeable change in blood pressure.

I met up with Jessica, Angela, and the guys, and we trudged our way out into the cold. I guess Angela could sense my lingering ire, so she kept up a conversation on various topics. I was very grateful, but I just wanted to go and sulk, so when we hit the parking lot, I just kept going forward and told everyone that I would see them later.

I wasn't really looking up, I was concentrating more on the slippery ground beneath my feet; it wouldn't be a lot of fun to trip and break something. As I was passing through the center of the lane in between the parking spots, I heard _it_.

A horrible screeching was ringing in my ears, and I looked up to find the source of noise that was causing my premature deafness. Little did I know, I was becoming annoyed with the noise that was signifying my death.

A car was coming straight at me, and I knew that I didn't have a chance of dodging it as it fish tale-d towards me. All I could do was gape at the hunk of metal about to smash into me. Everything around me drowned out of my senses, except for the screeching of the tires across the slick pavement and the rapidly approaching car.

It was so close to me now, all I had to do was close my eyes, and it would be over. Surprisingly, my life wasn't flashing behind my eyelids like every clichéd movie, the only thing I saw was a static picture of _Edward_. That's when I knew I should have acted on my feelings when I had the chance, I wouldn't have another.

I felt something grab a hold on me, and it wasn't what I expected metal to feel like, it felt _familiar_. I opened my eyes, because I didn't think I had just died, and my gaze was met with something that did cause my heart to stop for a second.

Edward had his arm around me, keeping me close to his side, while he angled his body to protect me from the impact of the car. His hand shot out and planted itself on the hood of the car, leaving a major dent, smashing it downward, killing the engine. The momentum pushed us back a bit, before Edward's footing was restored. When we came to a stop, I released the breath I had been holding and then the speculation in my mind began.

By the time I regained awareness, I was with Edward to the side of the car a couple feet. He spoke my name, and that's all it took, I was decided. I yanked him to me and smashed my lips to his.

For a moment, he seemed frozen; his eyes wide with surprise. I guess shock effects vampires the same way it does humans. As soon as he registered what was happening, his mouth came to life.

You always hear about the passion passing between two people when they kiss in romance movies and novels, the world stopping on its axis and all that jazz, but this was so much _more_. It was electric; I could literally feel sparks on my skin where we were touching. Our mouths moved in unison, falling into a rhythm that seemed so natural to us. I let my eyes slip close as the kiss wore on, just feeling the connection between us. I also felt a slight vibration against my chest, and my ears registered a possessive growl resonating from his.

Finally, I had to pull away for breath, and I looked into his eyes. They were bright; something pulsed within his irises, and it caused goose bumps to erupt everywhere on my body. Of course, this was the point that the universe decided that I had enough fun for the day, and I heard my name being called as well as the sound of police sirens.

_Thanks for ruining the best thing to ever happen to me fate_. I growled to myself, and upon hearing that, Edward smiled. But as soon as a grin graced his lips, it fell just as quickly, being replaced with a slight purse, his eyes filling with concern, and they started scanning me for injuries. The flurry of questions he fired off made me dizzy as I tried to comprehend them all.

"Bella? Are you alright? I didn't hurt you, did I? Should I get you to the hospital? Do you want to talk to Charlie? He's here…"

I shook my head, trying to clear it and answer him at the same time, but that seemed to make the dizziness intensify. Of course, Edward noticed this and held me up, and directed me towards the police cars surrounding the campus. I was beginning to lose feeling in my legs; I think the weight of the situation was finally dawning on me, and I couldn't handle it. The last thing I remember was feeling Edward pick me up.

* * *

I felt warm, and I was laying down on something soft. I inhaled a little deeper, and stretched. The scent of my house hit me, and I knew I was home, but I didn't know how I got there. I glanced out the window, and then at my clock, seeing that it was early in the afternoon. I must have slept through an entire day! There was a knock on the door, and I looked over.

Charlie was standing there with a slight crease in his brow. He shifted from foot to foot, and then hesitantly made his way over to my bedside. He sat down on the edge of my bed, and gave me a once over, before taking a slightly shuddering breath. His eyes looked so haunted and his hands were shaking.

"Hey Bells, how are you feeling honey?"

I took a breath and assessed myself before answering. "I'm fine dad; I guess I was just tired." I rolled my eyes at the incredibly convincing argument I had just given, but that was all I had. Physically, I felt fine and the other topic option looming over us wasn't as appealing to talk about, well at least to me anyway. I didn't really want to discuss the new developments between Edward and me with my father.

After I had questioned him about what had happened after I apparently passed out, I learned a couple of things. Firstly, since it was a slow day for the police department here, they were able to get to the school _very_ quickly. That means that my father had the impeccable timing of arriving just as I had pulled away from Edward after connecting with him that my dad wouldn't like to see.

Alas, after a beat, the dreaded topic was broached by Charlie. "Now look Bella, I know you had a huge scare today, not as big as mine of course, but that is beside the point. I know you and Edward are close, and I heard from a few people that you two are closer than I thought."

I cringed; what girl wants to discuss boys with her father? _Oh my God, please just open a hole in the ground and let it swallow me whole. Better yet, make me deaf for a while so I can't hear the questions Charlie is going to ask me._ I guess there was no better time than the present to get this conversation out of the way.

Taking a deep breath, I decided to just blurt it out and get it out there, _before_ Charlie had a conniption. "Well, Char-, I mean dad, Edward is very important to me, and he feels the same way."

Charlie's face had turned a lovely shade of reddish-purple, I'm assuming from the stress of keeping his more, um… _passionate_ opinions to himself.

"Bella, I know that you and Edward get along well, and you are such an advocate for his kind, but I'm still worried about you. Have you considered the possibility that you're just charmed by his lures? I don't mean to disrespect you, honey, but I have to put your well being first." The words came out in a rush, and he sounded defensive. His eyes were looking anywhere _but_ me.

That was the most I have ever heard Charlie say to me in such a small amount of time, and I was stunned speechless for a few seconds. When I finally got my wits about me and actually thought about what he said, I became a little aggravated. I know my face had morphed into my battle/bitch face that I usually reserved for major assholes at school. I probably should have been embarrassed that I unleashed it on my father, but I was already too far gone to be rational about it.

I puffed up a bit and caught my father's eye and held his as I gathered the _cajones_ to argue back. I took a deep breath, and began. "Dad, I know you're concerned about me, but _come on_, Edward has been nothing but respectful towards you, and hell, he helped with an investigation, and he saved my life! How could you deny him your trust now?" By now I had frustrated tears running down my cheeks, and I can guarantee you that my father was more scared of the waterworks than Edward becoming more than a friend to me.

With a sigh, he looked down at his hands, and started speaking. "Look Bella, I can't argue with you on those points, but you're my daughter! Have you even thought about what this-". He cut himself off with a forced cough of unease, but continued, "-just think about what you're getting yourself into." He stood up and went to the door. He turned in the doorway and said, "You have a couple guests," and left, clunking down the stairs, probably off to get his daily dose of Vitamin R.

With a soft knock to my door, Angela and Jessica entered my room and sat on my bed. I sat up against the headboard so I wouldn't have to crane my neck just to look at them. With a quick glance to each of them, I raised my eyebrow in expectation for the onslaught of questions that was sure to erupt.

Sure enough it did, and I actually turned into the stereotypical teenage girl that I strived not to be, despite myself. By the time they left, Jessica was full of information that I knew would become the student body's gossip for weeks.

I received a call from Tanya, she, of course, had her questions and her share of teasing. She told me that Edward had taken me to Charlie and the EMTs already there didn't find anything wrong with me; just that my mind had shut down from too much excitement, and I was escorted to Charlie's cruiser. Edward held me in the back as Charlie broke a few traffic laws to get me home. Apparently, Charlie unleashed his inner axe murderer side (aka being a protective dad) and all but kicked Edward out when I was situated in bed.

When I heard this, I became a little irked with my father, but I understood his position. I talked to Tanya for a little longer before I turned in for the night.

* * *

The days after the accident were full of questions and interest in my life that I wasn't exactly happy about, but I made do with a lot of stuttering and red-faced explanations.

Angela and Jessica were even more gaga over Edward, but the guys… not so much. Every time his name was brought up, they would grumble and try to ignore the people talking about him. Personally, I think that they were just a bit jealous and angry that my 'daring rescuer' made them all look bad to the girls at school, which was both amusing and sad at the same time, because they just weren't capable of performing the feats Edward could.

My dad wasn't really thrilled with the evolution of our relationship, he accepted that I wanted Edward in my life, but he still had his reservations. So now I wasn't really allowed to stay over at Tanya's, because I could, as Charlie put it, "I don't trust him; he might molest you in the middle of the night. Despite his actual age, he's still a teenager, and teenage guys want to do… _things_." I smiled as I recalled the slight shudder that ran down his back as he said that.

Well, to say that Edward was attached to my hip would be an understatement. Everywhere outside of school, he was with me. Now when his arm was around me, I could _feel_ how it meant more. And that kiss? Yeah, that wasn't a one-time deal. It seemed like every time I turned around, Edward was kissing me somewhere; whether it was my lips, forehead, wrists, or the tip of my nose.

Our dates were filled with my eating, and his doting. I know he might seem like he was smothering me, but to be honest, I enjoyed being taken care of. With the divorce, Renee's attention focused on Phil (not to mention our _very_ different mentalities), and Charlie's remarkable inability to cook, I was always the adult in any relationship I had. So I was _thoroughly_ enjoying Edward's attention and manners (having doors opened for me reminded me of old movies when guys had a little more, uh… class).

Speaking of dates, I was really enjoying the one I was on with Edward tonight. For once, I didn't have to eat during it, because I stuffed myself before he could arrive. No offense, but I became self-conscious sometimes when we went out, and I felt bad that he couldn't enjoy the food with me, so this was the best solution in my eyes.

We were just walking around Seattle, browsing shops, and just enjoying each other's company. I don't want to sound like such a gaga-for-her-boyfriend girl, but I just adored Edward. Looking at him in the light of a street lamp, I couldn't figure out what was his best feature. His hair was in its classic wind-blown style, shining bronze, and his green eyes were alight with excitement, and maybe just a _hint_ of love. I'm no fool; we're nowhere near _that_ stage yet. I mean we've been going out for only a couple of weeks!!! Our hands were entwined between us, and every once in a while, he would bring my wrist up to his nose and inhale, or just kiss my knuckles (what can I say, he's affectionate).

We were heading down a street filled with boutiques filled with clothing, jewelry, and other baubles, when Edward froze, and his head snapped up so fast, he looked like a blur to me. His hand curled itself around mine to the point of almost hurting, and I winced as I studied his expression.

It was terrifying; his face seemed to vacillate between confusion and horrified. "Edward, what-?" He cut me off, looking straight into my eyes.

"Bella, you need to listen to me, go into that store over there, and whatever you do, don't come out unless I call you, or go inside myself." His expression was staggering; I had never seen a look of pleading and anxiousness over power someone before, it chilled me to the bone. Since I didn't answer right away, Edward nodded, and quickly pushed me into a well lit clothing store, with a lot of people still inside. Edward watched as I was swept up into the crowd with in the store, turned around, and in the blink of an eye, was gone, an empty space marking where he had just been.

I knew I should have stayed inside the store, but the meaningless browsing and purchasing was irritating me, because it was separating me from Edward. Being my classic 'stubborn' self, although I prefer strong willed, I fought my way past plastic bags, strollers, and that annoying body scanner near the doors to find Edward.

I hit the street again, and looked around. About a block away, in a park, I caught a flash of bronze underneath a light. I _knew_ it was Edward, and I moved forward, no doubt at all in my movements.

When I reached him, I realized he wasn't alone; there was a smaller guy with him and they did _not_ have friendly stances toward each other. As I got closer, I could hear the growls emitting from both of them, so I took out some vervain just in case.

Like I said, I should have stayed in the store, safety was guaranteed in there, but I couldn't leave Edward. He meant too much to me. And if I wanted to get all feminist about it, I could argue that it was a double standard that he could protect me and I couldn't reciprocate. _Screw that_. Finally the growls between them were disrupted by actual words.

What I heard next came from Edward, and the statement utterly confused me.

He said, "Why did you come back here?"

* * *

Well, any thoughts about this chapter? Any theories for future plot events? Does Bella have a slight hearing problem, or is it just me? Feel free to speculate. I love reading reviews, so please do!

Oh and one more thing…

Some quick rec's:

**Emancipation Proclamation by ****kharizzmatik **

**The Lion and The Jackal by Lalina**

The latest updates for both these stories have me squealing like a little girl, please read them!!!

Until next time!

-gg


	11. Chapter 11: Window of Fear

Hi everybody, I'm soooooooooooooo sorry that I have taken so long to update. Long story short, I had two papers, an in-depth study guide, and extensive studying to do (and still do) for my class final. I didn't want to post something that was half-assed or riddled with errors and questionable transitions, so I finally got around to finishing the chapter and correcting it.

Thank you again to all of my readers, reviewers, and those who just discovered this story and added it to their favorites/alerts.

As always, the only thing I own is the plot, and a psycho cockatiel named Sybil (who has multiple personalities, none of which are good). SM is the lucky owner of Twilight.

Anyway on with the show kids!

* * *

**The Light in His Eyes**

_Chapter 11: Window of Fear_

* * *

**EPOV**

He was almost vibrating, his growls were so intense. The boy's thoughts were almost as frantic as the tremors rocking his frame.

_Threat, he's a threat… Eliminate the threat, he's seen you…_

_You weren't supposed to be seen… She'll punish you… Bad Riley…_

_Don't think about it, just do it, get rid of him…_

_Blood, it's everywhere… oh… so nice…_

I was becoming dizzy with all of the thoughts swirling through his mind. Usually the mind reading was bad enough if I was in a very populated area, but when it came to a vampire's thoughts, it intensified tenfold.

He was so young, probably a year two younger than I was in human years when I was turned. It saddened me, his life was cut short and I would have to cut his second even shorter. Carlisle had instilled in me his empathy. I may be higher in the food chain, but I tried to retain my human emotions. This vampire was wild, unchecked, and was killing humans. I couldn't allow it to continue; there was too much at stake for vampires to go on killing sprees if we were to live peacefully in society.

I crouched to match his posture, when two things slammed into my awareness. He had said he was sent by someone, and that meant only one thing: one of Carlisle's worst fears. A vampire was turning people indiscriminately, perhaps just for fun, then forcing them to do her bidding. This obviously wouldn't bode well the human population in the US, and it would hamper all of his plans for our peaceful transition into their world. The second thing to register in my mind was the frantic beating of a heart, steadily making its way closer to us. It was a rhythm I would know anywhere.

_Bella_.

I growled as I realized that she hadn't listened to me when I sent her to the store, my only way of keeping her safe in a time like this. After the shock of her actually approaching us wore off, I had another epiphany of sorts. I should have known by now that Bella wouldn't just stand down; she was just a little too stubborn for her own good, and while I found this to be a little endearing sometimes, it was entirely inappropriate at this point in time. She was going to get herself hurt, or even worse if I couldn't move fast enough if something went wrong.

_No Edward, you can't think like that. Bell __**will**__ be safe on your watch. She will be._

Her footsteps faltered behind me when she registered the tension between _Riley_ and me. "Edward?" When I didn't turn around and acknowledge her, she decided to further endanger herself by coming to a rest by my side. My instincts were telling me to grab her and run, but I couldn't risk him tracking us once he caught her scent. _I_ was capable of resisting the allure of her blood, but it was obvious that Riley wasn't, not by a long shot.

I watched as Riley inhaled rapidly as his fight or flight instincts kicked in when he realized he was outnumbered. As the air hit, his eyes became even more crazed and his tremors increased, this was it.

He could only control himself for a few seconds, until he finally lurched forward in a frenzy to get to the nearest source of blood. There was no me in that moment; just the animalistic creature that I am whose only instinct was to protect what was mine. As carefully as I could, I gave Bella a little shove behind me, just to get her out of the line of fire and charged ahead, keeping Riley in my sights.

Our frames clashed with brutal force, and our growls increased in volume. Despite the fact that he was recently turned and had the extra strength due to his residual blood in his body, my mind reading abilities allowed me to keep the upper hand as we continued to charge at each other. My mouth was overflowing with venom, fangs fully extended, ready to incapacitate my opponent, so I could finish the job, and his was too. There was no doubt that we would be fighting until one wasn't 'alive' anymore. As we flew around the surrounding trees, I always made sure he was as far as possible from Bella. I dimly heard her movements away from us as our skirmish continued.

Riley's thoughts were becoming more erratic as he vacillated from staying to finish the fight, or to return to whoever _she_ was and relay his activities for the night. It was becoming more difficult to pinpoint his next move, and if it was possible for my kind to get a migrane, I'm pretty sure I was experiencing one right now.

_Run… Fight… Escape!_

_Finish him; you weren't supposed to be seen!_

_BLOOD!_

_She won't be happy with you; you didn't finish your job._

_Just a taste…._

A sound that will haunt me for the rest of eternity reached my ears as I was pushing Riley back into the trees, preparing myself for the inevitable: his destruction at my hands. It was a cry of pain, anguish, and I never wanted to hear it again. Distracted, I shot a quick glance toward the sound, and was met with the sight of Bella, cradling her left wrist to her chest, gritting her teeth in an obvious attempt to push through the pain. Suddenly, she dropped to the ground, out like a light. That scared me more than everything that I had witnessed in my century of existence.

Riley saw his opportunity to break free as I was preoccupied with Bella, and made a dash for the forest, heading north, towards Canada. I would have followed him, but she was much more important to me in that moment. Spitting out the remaining venom in my mouth, I took a couple of unnecessary breaths to calm myself. I couldn't quite control my instincts, so my fangs remained exposed, but I couldn't wait any longer.

I cautiously made my way towards Bella, trying to get a handle on my more _animalistic_ tendencies, until I was kneeling by her side. Thankfully, her heart was beating steadily, just a little faster than normal, but was slowing down. Slowly, as not to injure her any more than she already was, I lifted her arm to inspect the damage. Her wrist was inflamed, but I didn't think that it was broken, just a bad sprain. Since my shirt was torn from my conflict with Riley, I created a splint (just in case it _was_ broken) with a small branch from a nearby tree. With her arm in place, I started to prop her up against a tree trunk, hoping that she would wake up.

I was relieved when I heard her heartbeat and breathing pattern speed up, signaling her waking up. When her eyes opened, they were a little dazed, but cleared up rather quickly. "Edward? What are you doing?" Her voice was so small and sounded so tired that I felt bad. One night with me and her life had been in danger, and she had been hurt because of it.

I sighed, sat down, and slowly situated her on my lap; I was sure that weren't any other dangers amongst the trees, so we were safe. In this position, our faces were on the same level, and she was staring into my eyes quite intensely, full of questions and patience. So with another (although resigned) sigh, I recounted what had happened, and in doing so, the terror of seeing her in pain resurfaced, consuming me.

Bella touched my cheek with her good hand, and ran her thumb across the surface of one of my fangs, and smiled a tiny smile, her eyes alive with compassion and love. It was a look that I would never tire of seeing. The feeling of her skin on my fang elicited a more base response, and I let out an involuntary, possessive growl.

"I don't blame you _at all_, Edward, got it? I know I can be a little pushy 'pain in the ass' as Tanya affectionately calls me, so what happened wasn't your fault." She finished her declaration with a soft smile, and she carefully wrapped her arms around my neck, burying her face, into my chest.

Although I wanted to forgive her right away, I simply couldn't. She had placed herself in a nightmare that Chief Swan would have a heart attack over if he ever found out the truth. I just couldn't fathom what was so important that she would potentially throw her life away.

I had to confront her (even though I loathed to) about this. Steeling myself, I began, "Why, why on earth would you do something so… _stupid_ Bella? Do you realize how dangerous that situation was? I mean, I know you are an independent person, but there are times where I think my opinion should count a little more. Seeing you hitting the ground like that, and hearing you in pain almost destroyed me. Do you know what I mean?" I was close to shaking her shoulders just to get my point across, but I restrained myself.

By the time I had finished my little rant about her being safety conscious, I realized that I had looked away from her as I had gathered my thoughts. I quickly shifted back to her face, and saw the shame emitting from her expression. She quickly looked down, and took a deep breath. When she jerked her head back up, I saw some defiance flaring in her eyes. She opened her mouth and so began her own rant.

"Edward, I'm sorry that I didn't listen to you, but honestly, are you that dense that you don't realize what was so important for me to 'risk my life' as you put it? You! It was you, you _idiot_!" She gave me a little tap on the head for emphasis as she called me what I hoped wouldn't be my new nickname.

Reluctantly, she continued, "I guess I also need to apologize to you about your opinion in my decisions. I really never thought that I disregarded you so much, but now that you pointed it out, I see that I have, and I'm sorry." Her eyes glazed over with unshed tears and when I went to wipe them away, she stopped me. "Wait, I need to finish this thought, you know how scatterbrained I can be sometimes." This earned a chuckle from both of us, and she started speaking again. " I had no idea what I would be walking into when I made my way towards you, and I admit that _was_ stupid, but you mean so much more to me than my own safety, and I couldn't _not_ be there with you. Can't you hear my heart beating? I wasn't seriously injured; it was just me tripping over my own feet again."

I was so overwhelmed with emotion at her declaration of throwing caution to the wind for me that I couldn't get close to her fast enough. I brought my hands to the sides of her neck and my thumbs nudged her chin up. I leaned in and placed a lingering kiss onto her chest, just reveling in the soothing rhythm.

_Mine_. My mind kept repeating the word like a mantra as I skimmed my mouth upwards and sucked on the hollow at the base of her throat, inhaling her scent, much more powerful there because the skin was so thin there. I could feel her hum in contentment and I smiled into her flesh and then swooped in to attack her lips.

After we parted (mainly for her to breathe) she surprised me with the most random question. "So, would you consider that our first real fight?" It was actually quite funny when she asked this because her eyes lit up with hopefulness, as if fighting was a good thing.

I gave her a bewildered stare for just a minute, and then burst into laughter at the absurdity of the moment. I just shook my head and kissed the tip of her nose.

When Bella asked me about Riley, I knew I couldn't lie to her; she had developed the uncanny ability to decipher my statements and deem them truthful or otherwise. It was actually sort of scary and saddening for me, because it reminded me a lot of Alice. If I ever tried to lie, the future would change, and she would then make a decision to 'out' me to the rest of the family or the friends we were visiting with. Yes, she was definitely my juvenile sister.

We stayed in the trees for just a few more minutes, but we couldn't escape reality forever, and I had to get her home. Unfortunately, she wasn't in the pristine condition that she had been in when we left. I was sure that once I got her home, I could help her take care of her wrist. As usual, she tried to let me off the hook as I drove the truck back to Forks. With her wrist clasped in my hand to keep the swelling down, she tried to placate me by giving me a run down at how well she could take care of herself.

"Seriously Edward, your worry is completely unfounded. I have hurt myself before, and I will again. This actually reminds me when I was in elementary school. You know how they have lines painted onto asphalt, and that magically creates a playground? Well I was skipping, and I use that term loosely, towards my class since lunch was over, and I wasn't looking where I was going. Of course, an older kid ran into me doing the same thing, and I fell and hit a tree. As I fell my ankle twisted and lo and behold, it was sprained. Oh and then there was this one time…"

The tales that I heard on the drive back made the trip relatively short and some were quite astonishing to hear. I had never encountered a person that was so prone to accidents and injuries before, and it made my protective side flare up.

By the time we were pulling up her driveway, I was even more resolved to help her despite her protests. Although she was more than capable of taking care of her injuries, she was also more than capable of creating them in the first place.

Unfortunately, Chief Swan had other plans. He was waiting up (as usual) for her, and when he saw her wrist, he, as Tanya would say, 'flipped his shit' and started yelling at me. Bella wouldn't have any of it though.

"Dad, seriously it wasn't a big deal, I just tripped over my own feet in the woods." After the words left her mouth, Bella's eyes widened, while I froze, a natural reaction to surprise. I was going to tell Chief Swan about Riley eventually, but I had been so worried about Bella, that her well being overshadowed my anxiousness about the vampiric situation I had found myself in. She had slipped up, and Chief Swan went into interrogation mode.

"Isabella Marie, what were you doing in the woods, and don't you dare lie to me!" I swear, his face turned purple as he said that. Like a typical teenager who was actually respectful of parents, I shrunk back from the ferocity of his tone. Bella was not much better; she started to stutter, which surprised me even more, I had never heard her stutter like that before.

"D-dad I, uh, well…" I couldn't take it anymore and stepped in for the both of us.

"Chief Swan, I'm going to be honest with you, remember the homicide I discovered a couple weeks back? Well, I found the one responsible. I recognized the scent and found him in the woods near Port Angeles. He was there to feed, and it seemed like he was on some sort of scouting mission for another vampire." When I told him this, the purple hue of fury drained from his face, replaced by a puce complexion. It seemed that he put two and two together.

He rounded on Bella again. "Are you insane Bella, you were there, weren't you! Haven't I taught you anything about keeping yourself safe? My God! You could have been killed!" He was shaking his head and pacing around the living room. His thoughts were probably traveling the fastest I had ever heard a human think.

_This is dangerous; I'm going to have to radio the surrounding stations to be more cautious and more aware… Jesus, a rogue…_

_How could Bella be so oblivious to danger? Surely I taught her better than that._

_I know Edward is trying to stay on my good side, but why is he the only one experiencing these things? I may be just an overbearing parent, but my current worries are warranted, aren't they?_

_Just thinking about this is making me tired. I need a Vitamin R right now…_

_Bella needs to go to the hospital…__**again**__. She's becoming such a magnet for trouble. Thank God I got medical insurance when she moved in; otherwise we would be flat broke._

I felt somewhat guilty about the whole situation since it was my idea to go to Port Angeles tonight. It was obvious that Chief Swan loved his daughter very much, and I wanted to ease his worries.

"Chief- uh _Charlie_, I'd be happy to take Bella to the ER for you; I feel responsible for this, and I want to make it up for you." I made sure to keep steady eye contact to convey my sincerity.

He mulled it over in his head for a few seconds, and decided to reject my offer and take her himself. Bella had other ideas.

"_Dad_, I don't need to go to the ER, I know that my wrist is sprained, and I've visited enough doctors to know what they're going to suggest I do: ice it and keep it wrapped. It's not rocket science." She punctuated the last statement with an eye roll with a dramatic sigh and exaggerated shoulder shrug.

Although, her argument had merit, Charlie was as stubborn as his daughter. He put his foot down both figuratively and physically. "Bella considering your actions tonight, I'm going to say this once: you're going to see a doctor, and that's that." He reaffirmed his words with a nod and turned his attention to me.

"As much as I appreciate what you did for Bella tonight, as well as the general public Edward, I think it's best if you would head home now." Both his thoughts and eyes were pleading with me, and I couldn't turn him down.

I responded somewhat despondently (I wanted to stay with Bella so bad), "Of course Chief Swan, I'll just leave now." I turned toward the front door and started to leave, not wanting to upset Bella's father any more than I had tonight.

Bella followed me outside onto the porch and closed the front door as Charlie collected his keys to the police cruiser. She turned to me and pulled me into a hug. As I wrapped my arms around her small frame, I rested my chin on the crown of her head. I just enjoyed the warmth radiating from her body, when she finally pulled away.

Looking into my eyes she raised her hand to cup my cheek. "Edward, it seems like I've apologized all night long, so why stop now, right?" I raised an eyebrow for her to continue. "I'm sorry for Charlie's behavior tonight. Really, he was mad at me and he took it out on you, I'm sorry."

I smiled and covered her hand in mine. "Really, Bella it's fine. I just had as much to do with the danger earlier, so in a way, he was justified."

She sighed, then stood up on her tiptoes, so I leaned down in response. She gave me a quick kiss goodbye, since her father was coming.

"I'll see you later, I promise." I turned around and dashed my way to Tanya's house. When I was in the foyer, I could hear the television in the living room.

For once, one of Tanya's sisters was with her. I walked into the room and leisurely sat down. I was introduced to Irina, and we made polite conversation, feeling each other out, until we were comfortable in each other's presence.

At first, Irina's succubus tendencies made themselves known.

_Hmm…cute._

_Sex hair, gorgeous eyes…_

_I want to suck on his Adam's Apple._

Of course these thoughts caused the discomfort that I was used to feeling regularly to bubble up. I looked at Tanya, pleading with her to make her sister _stop_. Being Tanya, she smiled wickedly at me and let her sister's thoughts continue to pelt me for another minute, before she took pity on me and revealed my ability to Irina.

This brought about more humiliation, this time from Irina, and allowed me some relief from her more explicit thoughts.

Tanya went further to spare me from her sister in the future by mentioning my ties to Bella. This piqued her interest, but I jumped in with I hope was a good distraction (not to mention a _more_ pressing matter in my opinion).

Quickly, I confessed to both of them what had transgressed this evening. Of course it took a little longer to get through it this time, because Irina's inner teenage girl came to the surface with brutal intensity.

"Edward you have to tell me _all_ about Bella, I only get a very brief description every once in a while from my sister…"

If I had been uncomfortable listening to her more _intense_ thoughts about me, it was nothing compared to what I felt relaying my most deep and passionate feelings I had for Bella to _another_ person. Finally, after half an hour of dissecting everything between Bella and me (and _a lot_ of squeals and _oooh's_ and _awww's_), I was able to stress the situation that we really should be focusing on.

Quite frankly, we couldn't do _anything_ besides what the local law enforcement would be doing. Any action might cause a larger conflict, and it would snowball out of control.

Tanya thought it would be best if I contacted my family, her reasoning being that the vampire that was turning others indiscriminately; and it might lead to others doing the same thing. Comparing our experiences with others might give us a clue about what we were dealing with.

I called as soon as Tanya suggested it, hoping someone would pick up in the midst of their now hectic schedules.

It took less than one ring before I heard the other phone connect.

A voice I had listened to for advice and sibling betrayal came through clear as a bell.

"Hello Edward."

I nodded knowing full well that she couldn't see me; it was just a human instinct that had stuck with me through the years, and replied quietly, "Alice."

"I'm sorry that I couldn't call you; I know you didn't have the ideal romantic evening. I only received flashes of your night, and by the time you crossed his scent it was too late." she mumbled apologetically.

I sighed, knowing that she had at least caught _glimpses_ of the sheer terror I had lived through in the past couple of hours.

"It's fine Alice, _we're_ fine now. She wasn't seriously hurt, and that's all that matters to me." I tried to reassure my sister that the attack wasn't her responsibility; it was just a random thing that I ran into Riley. The only thing that wasn't coincidental in this situation was the fact that he was sent there. He was in charge of something, and that spelled trouble in my book.

"When I _did_ see what was going to happen, I told Carlisle what I saw, so he is somewhat in the loop, but you'd better explain in more detail. He'll be here in three… two… one…" I heard a door open and footsteps.

"Alice, you wanted to see me?" Carlisle sounded a lot older and more tired than I had ever witnessed when I lived with him.

"Carlisle your _son_ is on the phone for you." She played up the most patronizing tone she could muster, resembling the stereotypical teacher that _every_ student hated with a passion.

"Edward?" Carlisle seemed surprised to hear from me so soon again. As a habit, my calls in the past were few and fleeting.

"Carlisle, how is everything going with your proposals and presentations?" I was hoping for somewhat good news, but either way, my encounter and the information that I had acquired because of it wouldn't brighten his day, and I almost didn't want to in that moment, but it had to be done.

"Oh you know son, politicians arguing for hours on end on a single sentence in my transcripts to the point where I almost want to give up, because there isn't any progress being made, and it becomes an ego-fueled insult battle. " He sighed, and I could picture him sitting down heavily somewhere in the house, rubbing his eyebrow in agitation.

"I'm sorry to hear that Carlisle, I know how much it means to you, much less the rest of us. The process may take a while, but think, if we have the results in our favor, it will be so satisfactory." I knew that he was my father figure, but he needed reassurance like everyone else.

"Thank you son, it's been a long day." He sighed once more before speaking, "So, Edward, was there something you wanted? I don't mean to be rude, but I have to say that this call was a little unexpected."

I rolled my eyes at his postulating, but he was right, so I trudged ahead in this very dismal conversation. "You remember the nomad that had come through and left that mangled body by the high school?"

"Yes, it was very upsetting to hear son, why? Do you have a lead on the case?"

Taking a deep breath, I relayed the story of what happened to Bella and me for the second time, and it still was as traumatizing to me as when I lived through it. Bella meant everything to me, and the thought of her hurt, disturbed me to the core.

After I had stopped talking, I was met with silence. I knew that Carlisle was mulling over the implications of having a vampire amassing servants of some kind for her pleasure.

Finally, he took a deep breath, and spoke, "Well son, you are correct in being anxious about this. Unfortunately, incidents like these have been reported across the country, but having a young vampire scouting for another, obviously skilled vampire is deeply disturbing."

"I just wanted to warn you about the less than optimal developments happening here; it's relevant to your work, and taking it into consideration for your future actions."

"Thank you for the heads up, son. Now, Esme finally got Alice to crack; Bella is now a household name here. She seems to be even more smitten with her than you are." He chuckled and we spent the next couple of minutes talking about Bella, mainly information about her that Esme would eat up due to her mother hen tendencies. Finally, I called it a night, and said goodbye.

After closing my phone, I closed my eyes, wishing for sleep that would never come, listening to the sisters flit about the house, taking care of human chores, and gossiping.

Without warning, I could sense the change in the electromagnetic field near my phone, indicating an incoming call or text. The sweet piano melody ringtone broke the silence of the room, and I knew immediately who it was.

I snatched my phone from my pocket again, and opened it with no hesitation.

"Bella?"

"Edward." Her voice was no more than a whisper. I stiffened up immediately.

"Bella? What happened? Are you alright?" Thousands off scenarios of danger ran through my head.

"Edward, something or someone was outside my window. It was scratching the glass; it woke me up. Whoever it was left a note, and Edward, it scared me more than the noise. Can you please come here? I didn't want to tell Charlie yet; I caused him so much worry tonight, I didn't want to add to it."

She sounded so distressed, I couldn't refuse her. "I'll be there Bella, stay away from the window, and hide as best as you can, don't turn on the lights. And don't hang up!"

I flew out of Tanya's house, barely registering their inquiries as to where I was going as I sped down the road.

"Okay, Edward." I could hear her rapid breathing through the phone, and I could just imagine her fear, heightening my own.

I turned the corner, and headed straight to her house. As I hit the pavement of her driveway, I could smell the scent that had encountered earlier.

Riley.

I quickly scaled the tree by her window, and sniffed around it. He had been here. Here at her house. I was seething.

"Bella I'm outside the window now, your safe, please let me in." I could hear movement in her room, and I saw her climb out of the chest at the foot of her bed with a look of worry on her face.

She ran across the floor, and quickly unlocked the window. I yanked it open and quickly closed it behind me, relocking it.

I took one look at Bella, and scooped her up into a hug, keeping her as close to me as possible. She was shaking like a leaf.

She brought her hand up, clutching a piece of paper so tightly that it was quickly becoming a twisted, misshapen ball.

With an unnecessary breath to calm my nerves, I took it from her and opened it.

* * *

Well you guys, any thoughts, suggestions, etc.? How about you? Have you had any embarrassing injuries? The story that Bella told Edward actually happened to me. I was so small when it happened; I couldn't use crutches, and was wheelchair-bound for a few weeks. Remember reviews are like the icing on the cake, so please do! Thanks!

PS 5,000 words!

-gg


	12. Chapter 12: Memories, Nibbles, & a Plan

Hi y'all! I know that I have been getting in the very bad habit of posting later and later, and I'm truly sorry. Life has been a little hectic lately, including: birthdays, my sister's college preparations, and holidays among other things.

Oh, here's some unusual news! Do you guys know the show Antiques Roadshow on KPBS? I'm actually going to be working for them for a day and I might be in the episode that they film! Unfortunately, they won't air the episode that I'll be in until January of next year, so I'll have to wait to see if they actually caught me in a shot _somewhere_. Still, I'll be surrounded potentially priceless items and really interesting pieces of history, so that's something to look forward to. Anyway... back to my writing...

Thank you to everyone who reads, reviews, and adds this story to their alerts, I'm most grateful.

Remember, Twilight = SM's, I merely own a laptop onto which I type out these scenes from my imagination.

Well, hopefully this was worth the wait. In the words of Disney's Peter Pan, "Here we go!"

* * *

**The Light in His Eyes**

_Chapter 12: Memories, Nibbles, and a Plan_

* * *

**BPOV**

It _was_ a sprained wrist.

Why don't men ever listen to women when they tell them something that we're one hundred percent sure about? I mean seriously, I know my own body people!

At first, the doctor's visit was filled with my grumbling and Charlie's brooding silence. I could tell he was upset, because I could see the tiny cleft between his eyebrows that I had apparently inherited.

When the on-call doctor gave the definitive word that it was a sprained wrist I gave Charlie my signature smug smile, and was rewarded with a scowl that would put a pissed off cat to shame. I quickly glanced away, not wanting agitate him so much 'Volcano Charlie' would erupt and spew words at a volume not suitable for anyone who was interested in keeping their hearing.

I was given some Tylenol for the ride home, and I was promptly sent to my room for the remainder for the evening as Charlie stomped off to distract himself from his anger at me until he tired himself out.

Once I made it up the stairs and into my room, I suddenly felt incredibly tired, and I trudged my way to the bathroom to get through my nightly routine before slumping over into my bed.

I couldn't have been asleep for more than hour, but I was jolted out of my slumber by…_something_. My eyes snapped open and I could hear my heart pounding in my ears. I quickly looked around, disoriented, and somewhat blind because my eyes were still bleary with sleep.

Suddenly, I heard a noise. It was one that vaguely reminded me of nails on a chalkboard, you know the kind of noise that makes you cringe and gives you feeling like the fillings in your teeth (if you have them) are going to fall out. It was originating from the window across my room, near the desk I usually sat at so I could look outside and space out when I was imprisoned by copious amounts of homework.

I saw a pale hand glide behind the glass, as fingernails grated against the surface, producing the horrendous noise. The hand quickly disappeared, and in its place was a piece of paper. It was taped to the glass, and I watched as it swayed in the slight breeze outside.

Despite the overwhelming feeling of dread bubbling up in my chest, I decided to investigate the mysterious note. I quietly made my way towards the window, my eyes roving around, taking in as much as they could as they adjusted to the dark.

Sliding the window upwards, I reached through the frame and gently pulled the tape off of the glass and brought the note inside. With shaking hands, I unfolded the piece of paper.

I wish I hadn't.

On the paper was deceptively elegant handwriting, the kind that people strived to write like in the early nineteenth or twentieth century, practicing hours on end to perfect.

* * *

_Vampire,_

_I recently learned that you have been somewhat of an obstacle to my dear friend Riley during his nocturnal activities. It is not your concern what my companion does of his free will, and by interfering, you are turning back on your own kind._

_As you can clearly see, I was informed of your, comradery, shall we say, with this particular human, and have the resources to track her down. I'm willing to let you walk away without punishment your past transgressions against one of your own, as well as this most abhorrent relationship, if you refrain from your efforts control members of other covens._

_You are exactly like your sire, defending humans against their natural predators: us. I have been following your "father's" political career for some time now, and just the thought of him is enough to get my venom flowing. You are a disgrace to your kind, and my patience for your family is growing thin. We shouldn't have to conduct ourselves in a manner in which humans find appropriate. They are in no position to be dictating our nature._

_My coven isn't going to stand for this beauracracy any longer. We, the Volturi, are better than this, and it's time that the humans knew it. This will be your one, and only warning, stay out of our business, and please pass it on to 'dear old dad,' with my highest regards. And another thing, I don't think it would be wise to be seen with your pet any longer._

_If you do not comply with these simple, little requests, I will personally make sure that your pet will never see the light of day again. Instead, the short, remainder of her life will be bathed in red, as her blood spills around her._

_Pray that our paths never cross again._

* * *

I read the letter through twice, just to make sure that it was real. Edward and I were being threatened, and our lives, _his_ family's lives were in danger. What was worse, they knew where I was, they could get to me at any time that they wished to, and that thought made me realize one very important thing.

_I can't stay here_. _Charlie's here, I can't endanger him like that…_

I was hyperventilating; my chest hurt every time I took a breath. My body seemed to be on autopilot, and I was suddenly aware that I had my cell phone in hand. It was already ringing and Edward picked up.

I was on the verge of hysteria, as various scenarios of death bombarded my mind, barely listening to Edward at all.

There _were _a few key instructions that registered in my mind, and they became my new mantra as the terror racked my body.

_Hide._

_Stay quiet._

_Lock and get away from the window._

_Shhhhh…._

I wedged myself in the chest at the foot of my bed, thankful that I was still flexible enough to fold myself inside.

_I really need to stretch more often…_

Obviously, the fear was making me a little loopy, the most random thoughts raced through my head as I waited for Edward.

After an eternity, I was opening up the window and in his arms.

Edward's scent calmed me some, his overall presence slowing my heartbeat as my body recognized the safety he could provide.

I explained what had happened, and handed him the letter, unable to have it touching my skin anymore.

I watched Edward's face as he took in the note; his eyes seemed to become more detached, his posture changing, making his overall appearance resemble that of a predator. I actually cringed a bit; seeing him fight with Riley had been one thing, he would never hurt me when he was protecting me, but seeing him so uninhibited with anger produced by far one of the most scariest things I had ever witnessed.

After scanning the paper again, his eyes snapped to mine, still hard, but softened when he saw how uneasy he was making me. His hand seemed to glide through the air, and he began to stroke my back. My muscles started relaxing immediately, the tenseness from my earlier stress dissolving away with every stroke.

With a deep breath, Edward began his usual apology for the shenanigans we usually got into together, and I let him get through it, because that was just the way he was: carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders. Of course, I had to comfort him, despite the sword looming over our heads.

"Edward it's fine; I mean not completely fine, but… Damn it! Okay, what I meant was that it's partially my fault too; I tried to interfere when you confronted Riley, so obviously he could find me, right?" Despite the fact my reasoning was sound, and should take the guilt off of his shoulders, it also acknowledged the fact that I _was_ found. By the time I had finished my sentence; his face had become ghastly pale.

His arms crushed me to his chest and he started to shake with shuddering breaths, trying to calm himself down from the terror probably tormenting him. I wrapped myself around him as best as I could, trying to comfort him for once.

He calmed down after a minute or two, and we just stared at each other, just gazing at our better halves.

Eventually, the reality of the situation burst our little bubble of comfort, and our minds began to use the critical thinking skills I was forced to learn in school. We had a problem, and a solution wasn't going to be easy to find for it.

I knew there were _numerous_ things floating around in my mind, so I could only imagine the vast amounts of questions and scenarios flying around in Edward's. The bottom line was that we needed a plan, and one of the essential requirements for that plan was to keep Charlie out of danger as much as humanly (or vampiric-ally) possible.

Finally, after about two and a half hours, of totally spit-balling, I came up with something that I could live with, despite how crazy it sounded.

In hindsight, I shouldn't have been surprised with the information that I learned a couple years ago from Jacob, when I first came to Forks. It had been the transitory period of my life, when I was still adjusting to the different surroundings, temperatures, and people.

Jacob was truly my first friend here. I was completely out of my element, and wary of people because of the fights I had with my mother, but when I was given my truck, I was greeted by the person who would become my personal sun.

With Jacob, nothing was awkward, and our friendship was easy to develop. He tried showing me how to maintain my truck, but I just wasn't born a mechanic like he was, so I would just hang out with him and watch him take apart the parts, clean them, and restore them in no time at all. He was my rock when I was still trying to acquaint myself with my peers, and that solidified his place in my heart as my best friend.

During one of our many walks along the shores of First Beach, I was given the run-down of the Quileute legends. Of course, Jacob took it somewhat seriously, seeing as it was his heritage, while I viewed it as more for entertainment purposes…

* * *

_As we shuffled our way across the rocks that littered the shore, Jacob pointed out the surrounding area: cliffs (frequently used for testosterone contests), certain rock formations, the trees, and whatever he thought would interest me._

_After aimlessly trudging our way down the shore, we trekked our way back to Jacob's house, trying to warm ourselves up by standing in front of the radiator. Once we could feel our fingers again, we retired to the small couch in the living room. Although we lapsed into a silent moment, it wasn't filled with anxiety or a need to do something; we were content to just __be__. All too soon, Jacob's eyes lit up as he came up with something that he just __had__ to share._

"_Hey, Bella! Remember the stories that about my tribe's origins?" His face was full of exuberance and he waited eagerly for my answer._

_Despite the fact that he was a year and a half younger than me, sometimes his questions combined with his expressions reminded me of a very enthusiastic parent who often used the 'I'm so disappointed in you' speech when he/she didn't get his/her way. Of course, I couldn't have anyone disappointed with me; especially a friend._

_I quickly racked my brain for some tidbits of the various stories that Jacob had told me over the course of the past couple of weeks. Of course, I had so much going on right now, that I only had fragments of conversations to go on, so I came up with the most polite, yet honest answer I could. "Uh, just a bit Jacob… I mean, you've crammed so many things into my head, it's all kind of jumbled…" _

_Jacob sighed and dropped his grin, and scrunched his face up into a mock scowl. "God Bella, why do I even talk to you? I mean seriously, it's like your IQ is dropping or something. Do they even teach you in the pale face school?"_

_Jake knew exactly how to trigger the reemergence of my twelve year old self, so I growled at him and responded. "Aw, shut up Jacob, it's not my fault your __boring__ voice makes me fall asleep despite how interesting the story is."_

_The faux argument soon escalated, ending in a wrestling match that I should have lost, because Jake was part ninja or something, but he __let__ me win, as usual. I released him from the pin he had allowed me to make and we slumped back against the cushions._

_When our breathing returned to somewhat normal, we started our conversation again._

_With a smirk, Jacob began his tale. "Okay, back to business, Billy just told me an awesome story last night while I was procrastinating on homework." I had to snort at that, Jacob was notorious for __not__ doing his assignments until the absolute last minute. I was actually surprised he was still in school. Charlie had actually encouraged me hanging out with Jacob because: he and Billy were fishing buddies, and he thought that we were good friends and that my 'advanced years' would aid Jacob in his pursuit of an education and staying out of trouble. Shaking, my head, I returned my attention to the tale being spewed out of Jacob's lips._

"_Apparently, our tribe descended from wolves; and our ancestors somehow developed magic in order to change into man, thus creating the tribe." He rolled his eyes, and continued. "Now don't get me wrong Bella, I know that you don't take these stories seriously, and for the most part, I kind of have to, but this one is just a little too farfetched for me to believe too."_

"_Anyway, since we were derived from magic, we're supposedly capable of becoming the original guardians of the tribe! Of course, the most important information of what we would be guarding the tribe from Dad wouldn't tell me. How typical is that? Parents feel like kids can't be trusted with secrets anymore…" His adolescent grumbling continued on for the next couple of minutes, until he seemed to calm himself down. I had to agree with him on some points, but in my experience dealing with my mother's prejudice, sometimes ignorance could be bliss._

_Looking back at it, I think Jacob's testosterone was making him more susceptible to anger; his temper seemed to get shorter and shorter the longer I knew him, but thankfully, it was never directed towards me. Sometimes he would make himself so angry he would literally shake, vibrating almost, until he talked himself down from his ire…_

* * *

Bringing myself back into the present, I shook off the memories, and refocused on Edward's face. We were sitting on my bed, him still deep in thought, completely still, it was almost eerie how still he could be; it felt like I was sitting next to a statue. I glanced quickly at the green glowing numbers of my alarm clock, confirming that it was almost four-thirty in the morning, about a half an hour before when Charlie usually got up for work. I was going to explain this fast. Sighing, I knew that the next couple of hours would not be pleasant, but I had to plow through them anyway.

I reached my hand up and cupped Edward's cheek, feeling the marble-like texture under my palm and finger tips. The contact of my hand seemed to thaw him out and his eyes shot down to my wrist, and suddenly my hand was captured in his as he nipped at my pulse point. Although Edward seemed to like hearing my heartbeat and feel my pulse, this action felt a little different than the other times that he showed his affection for me. This time, I felt his desperation through the movement of his lips and the raggedness of his icy breath as it swept across my skin.

I tightened my grip on his chin, and 'forced' his face upward. His eyes held a bit of sadness in them, and longing flickered in and out, as if he was trying to beat it back. To be honest, I was thinking we could try something more than the chaste kisses and hand-linking that we had been doing, and I would love nothing more than to give it a go, but I didn't think that the current situation, and that wasn't even including Charlie at this point.

Edward had other plans.

Evidently, he lost his battle with himself and I found myself being propelled backwards onto the pillows at the head of the bead. His mouth was already on mine, and it took me a couple seconds for me to realize that I could, in fact, breathe through my nose only.

I could feel my heart hammering against my ribs as he finally released my lips and moved to the hollow under my ear. His breath was fanning against me slowly, despite the vigor he had displayed just seconds before.

His tongue was tracing mindless patterns on my neck, and my breathing was unreasonably loud. _Crap, Charlie can probably hear that you sex deprived nut!_ His hands were roaming all over my torso, from the sides of my breasts to the swell of my hips, gripping and kneading. Unfortunately, my mind was trying to think rationally, but my heart was pounding at a different frequency. _I want this to happen_, it kept repeating, over and over.

With a click, I knew Edward wanted to take this to the next level.

Vampires by nature, _wanted_ to bite things (I mean seriously, DUH!), and that was included in any sort of situation: fighting, feeding, and during more intimate moments. The thing was, while venom was produced for the first two scenarios, the third was the only time that the hollow fangs of a vampire were empty, the glands within the gums stopping the production of venom. During more passionate and heated acts, a vampire would have the urge to bite; the predator in them would need an outlet for such strong emotions.

It didn't make sense for a vampire to hurt his/her lover, unless their partner was, you know, _into_ that type of stuff, then the vampire could train themselves to stop their body's reaction. The only venom production during this type of encounter would be at the _end_ of the bite, to close up the wound.

That click of his fangs descending seemed to give my brain the last boost of strength over my heart, and I found myself saying, "Edward, wait."

All at once his motion stopped, and he leaned back, his eyes flashing with hurt. I was gasping, both to catch my breath and realizing what my request sounded like. "No! No! Edward, I didn't mean _stop_; I just meant we shouldn't do this right _now_."

He sighed, and I caught a little glimpse of his fangs, smooth, sharp, and incredibly alluring to my hormone-fueled thoughts.

"I have a plan that I want to discuss with you about the Volturi and I think it will be the best option." I was pleading with my eyes and his body seemed to wilt, showing the resignation in his thought process.

His eyes were pleading with me as well; he wanted to consummate this relationship in the vampiric way and he wanted to do it now. "Bella, _please_. I just want to get closer to you. _Please_. I know that we've only been together for a short amount of time, but you've become my world. You're so important to me and I just want to be connected to you, _please_." He sounded so desperate, and I knew he wanted it so badly. His words struck a chord in my heart, making it beat irregularly.

I wanted this too, and for once, I was going to let my heart lead instead of my head. Taking a deep breath, I leaned forward and kissed him again. When our lips made contact, Edward's predatory instinct came back in full force, and I could feel the growl that tore through him, vibrating my vocal chords, creating a humming sensation between the two of us.

His fangs were scraping my lips, but he was careful not to pierce them, not just for my safety, but Edward had confided in me that he didn't particularly find facial jewelry attractive, so I think he was making sure that wouldn't become an option for me from this encounter.

I gripped onto him as best as I could, feeling his muscles bunching and relaxing with his movements as he brought me closer to him. His hands resumed their hectic paths over my back and sides, occasionally sliding icy fingers inside the hem of my shirt, causing goose bumps to erupt across my flesh.

I was moaning, almost to the point that I should be embarrassed, the sensations blocked out any self-consciousness I might have had. Thank God Edward had welded his mouth to mine; it muffled the noises that escaped me.

Finally, Edward released my lips and his smooth lips glided over my cheek, before traveling lower. I felt a kiss pressed against my sternum, right above my heart. Then, I felt the faint tickle of the points of his fangs as they grazed over my collar bones. It was whisper soft and made me giggle.

The sound seemed to please Edward, because he stopped his ministrations and met my eyes. His face transformed from pure want and need to that of joy and adoration. He swooped in and soon our mouths moved together.

Once again, Edward pushed me back further onto my pillows, his breathing becoming almost a purr, the sounds of his growls mixing with each exhale.

His lips left mine and fastened themselves onto the side of my neck, his tongue running up and down the artery. I knew I wanted him to bite me, show me his commitment, but I was still a little fearful. I had always be deathly afraid of needles, and in my eyes, that's exactly what his fangs were.

And on some level, my self-preservation instincts also kicked in. I trusted Edward with my life in theory, but by doing this I would also be showing him how invested I was in this relationship. I was offering my life (literally) to him, and I didn't have any regrets with the decision. I was just terrified of the unknown.

Another thing that worried me would be the bloodlust. Edward really never displayed any discomfort around humans, and I attributed that to his actual age, his years of practice paying off. But those instances didn't involve the actual presence of free flowing blood.

All of those concerns flew out the window at what came next.

I felt another vibration against my throat, and I registered the words he was saying to me. The reverence in his tone brought tears to my eyes.

"Thank you Bella, thank you. You mean everything to me. I promise that this mark will be another comfort I can offer you, another tie to you so you'll never be alone. I love you." And with that I felt two small pinches in my throat. I would have to compare the slight pain I felt to those shots of Novocain that you were subjected to when having cavities filled, only small areas were affected, but you still felt it.

There was a slight pause; I assumed that Edward was giving himself time to adjust to my blood hitting his taste buds. Then I could feel a slight pull on my neck, almost a massage and it felt so _damn good_. I hummed in appreciation and Edward's hands came up to cradle my face as he finished laying claim on me.

I winced slightly as he withdrew, but with a cool sweep of his tongue on my flesh, the pain dissipated. Trailing his mouth upwards he kissed me a final time, and leaned back. His eyes were alive, dancing with a myriad of emotions.

I was struck with emotion as well as I kept chanting to myself, _I'm his, I'm his_.

I knew that this would be a huge step for the both of us, and wrapping my head around the idea sent my senses into overdrive. I could feel the tenderness of the skin where the bite was, and there were two little raised bumps from the venom repairing the skin. I also felt a little light-headed with blood loss but the dizzying effect just added to the euphoric bliss that I was drowning in.

_If this is what it's like to get high, some of my friends might be on to something…_

I actually snorted out loud. _Why do I think these things?_

Before I got all philosophical by trying to answer that question I heard Edward question my pretty strange reaction.

"Are you _laughing_ Bella? I don't think that _anything_ we just did would constitute funny…" He pouted, but there was humor in his voice, his eyes.

Instead of responding, I just leaned up and kissed him again, before collapsing back onto the pillows. I took a deep breath and glanced over my shoulder at the god lying next to me. His face was serene, and it seemed like my blood had an iridescent effect on his skin in the cloudy morning light. It delighted me that something of mine was with him too, that we were connected in a physical way.

Sadly, reality set in again, and I had to tell him what I thought about before our little love bite.

"Okay…. Edward, remember my friend Jacob Black?" At this he nodded his acknowledgement. Nodding in response, I continued, "Well he is part of the Quileute tribe, and based on their local legends and myths, I think it would be a good idea if I hung out in La Push for a while, so that this little tiff will blow over and Charlie and I will be safe."

He seemed confused so I decided to clarify. "His people are supposed to harbor magic that can protect people on the reservation. If I stay with them for a while, I think that their protective spells might work on me. Besides, Billy already considers us family so it wouldn't be too much trouble. Plus, by hiding out there, I wouldn't be in my normal settings, so it would make it a little harder for them to track me for a while, if that is their intent, but I think this was just more of an empty threat now. We haven't done anything wrong, and I doubt that we'll run into Riley again, so they would have no reason to come looking for us. I think that they just wanted to 'scare us straight.' Soooo… What do you think?" I channeled Jacob's pleading face, maybe with a little too much puppy dog eyes, but it seemed to do the trick with Edward.

He contemplated my offer before speaking. "Well, considering my… existence, I think it would be foolish of me to discount a belief in magic. I know that _some_ of monsters that I was taught to fear during my human years may not have been real, _now_, but at the time, I think that I did believe in them, so there is the possibility that there is something there. I was actually going to suggest that we meet my family for help, but considering their schedules, and the distance between us, I don't think that they will actually be able to help us. That being said, I think we should try it, but I wouldn't put too much faith in it…" He trailed off, obviously still thinking of other alternatives. Unfortunately, I think that he had already gone through the most realistic ones and the outcomes weren't as good as he would like.

I glanced at the clock and saw that Charlie would be waking up soon. I turned back over and tucked myself under his chin and wrapped my arms around him. I could feel his breath come and go, and I kissed his silent chest before saying quietly, "I think that it would be the most beneficial for the both of us if you weren't in my room when Charlie is up. I like you, and I don't want to see you murdered by my father." Edward chuckled and rolled his eyes. With a quick kiss on my forehead, I felt a slight breeze, heard the sliding of my window close, and then I was alone with the letter.

I felt a little exhausted, the night's events crashing down on me again, but I pushed my tiredness aside, gearing up for what was sure to be a massive 'discussion' as Charlie would call it, which was really code for argument/punishment in parent speak.

After a couple minutes of light snoring, I could hear Charlie get up and move around in his room. I decided that it would be better to let him take a shower, that way he would be more relaxed and open to compromise. Of course, it would also make him more alert, so I couldn't lie to him, he'd _definitely_ catch me.

So, I changed out of my pajamas and into some comfort clothes, mentally preparing myself. I found two little white dots on my neck while looking in the mirror; they were practically invisible against my pale skin to my human eyes, so that was a huge relief. Looking around my room, I contemplated how different my life had become since I met Edward. He had changed _everything_.

I heard the water to the shower cut off and knew I had only minutes.

It was time to tell Charlie.

* * *

Well, there it is; chapter twelve. So, was it everything you wanted? Did you get your fluff fix? Any thoughts about the Volturi? Please review and I might send Edward over to give you a little love bite while his hands… _roam_. Thanks and until next time!

-gg


	13. Chapter 13: Rules No Longer Apply

OMG you guys! An early update! Has Hell frozen over? I know I can barely believe it myself.

Well, the Antiques Roadshow was AWESOME! We had over six thousand people come to get things appraised and let me tell you, I had never seen so many paintings and wooden furniture in my life. It was amazing to see some really historical things too, like the rifles from the Civil War and whatnot. Any who… enough of my geeky rant and on to important things.

I just wanted to wish my sister a happy 18th b-day and congrats on graduating high school! I love you so much!

Thank you to all of my readers and those who have reviewed, you guys are the best!

Just a reminder… Twilight = not mine, damn it!

Well here it is, Chapter 13!

* * *

**The Light in His Eyes**

_Chapter 13: Rules No Longer Apply_

* * *

**?POV**

I stalked my way across the small field towards the more rural part of town just a few yards away from our hideout. The lights of the nearby houses and streetlamps illuminated the ground for the unfortunate humans that found themselves outside at this time of night, but the light was inconsequential to me, I didn't need it. I crouched, waiting and listening.

That's when I heard it. It was the most beautiful sound in the world.

A thump.

Staggering footsteps and obnoxious laughter followed by incoherent sentences echoed across the surrounding buildings, reverberating in my ears, indicating an inebriated state, whether by drugs or alcohol I couldn't care less. There was only one thing that mattered to me.

The sloshing of blood through the veins was getting closer and closer.

Another thump.

If I had any adrenaline left in my body, it would have been surging through my system, accelerating my biological functions in preparation for the chase, but that wasn't the case anymore.

Finally, my prey was in my sights, and the time had come. I pounced; the drunkard was so intoxicated he couldn't even conjure up enough will power to scream…

* * *

My life was just like anybody else's conformed to schedules and others' ideals.

Every day, I would wake up; go through the motions of getting ready for the day and head out the door.

Once outside, I would take the same route, see same people passing by, and glance at the same surroundings.

Like I said, we all live by a schedule.

However, I deviated from my life one night when I went out with my friends. I actually agreed to that evening out because everyone I knew, even my parents, thought that I was becoming too comfortable being inside the same four walls all the time. They feared that I was too focused on my tasks and I wasn't enjoying life enough.

Figures.

I was just doing what society wanted me to, and yet others still found a problem with me. Why couldn't everyone be happy with what they had?

I was walking by myself that night. I know, stupid me right? Well, it was still a bit early around eight-thirty, I mean; none of the crazy people came out until at least eleven.

I was returning home from a little get together with a friend after our initial outing. We had gone shopping at the little outlets around town, forgoing the mall because it was always crowded on the weekends. I had mainly browsed, but I did end up buying a couple trinkets, a rare indulgence for myself. My hands clung to the small plastic bags holding my purchases, the crinkling of the material echoing in the breeze. My friend wanted to drive me home, but I had waved her off. It was only a couple of blocks…

It was a little chilly, the air weighing heavy with the promise of rain. I could see my breath escape me in little puffs, quickly dissipating into the night.

Despite the cold, I smiled to myself. My family had been right on one thing: I needed to go outside and reconnect with people; I had cooped myself up for too long.

Although I had fun that day, there was nothing like going home to my own bed.

I walked quickly, eager to get back home after a long day of walking. I was so anxious to be home, that I wasn't paying attention to my surroundings. That was the second rule broken that night.

Finally, my neighborhood was in sight. The houses were lit up, shadows passing behind the curtains in the windows, showing the activity going on inside them.

Distracted, I didn't feel the initial blast of air around me, but the second one I did. I only registered it because a new sensation accompanied it. A cold grasp on my wrist brought me back to my senses.

Quickly, the world became a blur of lights, sounds, and the void created by the darkness surrounding me. Our movements seemed almost too quick looking back at it, but I was too terrified at the time to acknowledge it. It yanked me back into the bushes of a park that was across the street of my block. No one was there, the children and parents had already returned to their homes after their fun had ended.

The playground a couple yards away from where I was taken would no longer hold any fond memories for me after that night. It would forever stand as the pit stop before I was wrenched from everything familiar.

I tried to fight back; following all of those instructions taught to us about strangers, hitting them in certain areas to make your assailant vulnerable, so you could get away. These rules that were supposed to help me didn't even compare to the mystery person's strength.

More rules that were useless… More rules that didn't apply…

I was exhausted by the time I had run through the lists of self-defense, barely able to swing my arm back for another hit.

I think that the person that had me in their clutches knew that too. Before I knew it, the person was taking off with me again, this time covering my mouth, my eyes registering the blurs and disorientation of our surroundings.

When we finally stopped again, I couldn't see anything. The desolation of the night air outside had nothing on the utter absence of _anything_ this new place had. I could still hear the late night sounds of cars passing by, but no voices. Not good.

No one would hear me if my captor finally uncovered my mouth.

If my adrenaline had been working its way through my system earlier, it was jetting through it now.

I knew only a few minutes had passed since I caught a glimpse of the domestic scene of my street, and that gave me pause. _How did we move so fast?_

That thought was quickly driven out of my mind, when the weight of the hand was removed from my mouth and moved to the back of my neck, holding me in place. I continued to struggle, but I just wasn't strong enough and I was wearing myself out.

_Mom would be so disappointed in me… She always said that she had raised a fighter, and I'm falling short…_

Something just as cold as the hand that had been holding me fanned out across my face. It was sweet, the type of scent that was supposed to be soothing, relaxing, and I was definitely feeling the effects of it. My eyes started to cross as they lost focus, so my mind saw everything like it was a kaleidoscope in the limited light filtering into the place we were in.

My mind started to drift; a combination of total exhaustion and the scent that washed over me. Then, out of nowhere, two points prodded against my throat, leaving shallow scratches in their wake.

_This person is going to stab me! Why? What did I do to deserve this?_

Just like that, my efforts for saving myself were gone. All I could think of was my impending death. I was going to be stabbed to death, possibly coupled with something worse.

The two points came back into contact with my throat again and then there was a pinch. Whatever broke through the barrier of my skin had something on its tip. It began as irritating warmth and somewhat of an itch; bubbling its way through my blood stream, kind of like the anesthesia shot some doctors use for smaller, less invasive procedures.

The person holding me suddenly crushed me to them. I heard a snap, and then felt a horrible stitch in my side. My rib was broken. I couldn't breathe; the wind was knocked from my lungs as the grip around me tightened even further.

A suction of some kind seemed to be centered where the two points had pierced my skin. The heat flowing into me started to burn; pain was rapidly increasing. My veins felt like they were filled with acid.

I was quickly losing my remaining strength; my heart was starting to slow, and I was getting a little drowsy… I tried to fight off the stupor.

I had only been whimpering, at this point, but I had regained enough air for one last attempt at alerting help. I sucked in what would be my last breath and did the only thing I could.

I screamed.

There was a commotion outside. _Someone had heard me!_ I was going to be saved!

What arrived was the farthest thing from help.

It was competition.

My assailant immediately dropped me, and a deafening noise could be heard. It was like a small explosion, it was that loud.

Growls and keening echoed through the dark space, along with grunts, and a most peculiar sound: metal. As I lay on the damp, cold ground, I could hear the sound of metal scraping against metal, making my ear drums ring.

I was groaning, although it couldn't be too loud, as it was hard to draw a breath, but I could dimly hear myself making noise.

I was tossing and turning, trying to alleviate _some_ of the burning emanating from my body. I couldn't find any relief, and I resigned myself into thinking I had already died and I was in Hell.

Belatedly, I realized that I had been left alone to suffer.

Time seemed to lose all significance. It stretched out; making my misery intensify tenfold, because it was all I could feel.

Never during the time that I lay in transition, did anyone come find me. I was just too far away from people, I was literally helpless.

Finally, after eternity I was able to feel the pain dissipate. I could feel my limbs again, and was able to move. The pain lessened until it was nothing at all, and the most amazing thing happened.

I woke up to a different world.

The detail around me was so much sharper than I remembered and I could hear _everything_.

Unfortunately, my focus didn't last long. I wanted to get home; obviously I was still alive, so I could ease my parents' fears. It seemed like no time at all that I had navigated my way back home. I had no idea how I did it, it just seemed so natural.

I was so focused on getting home, and I made my way through the door, ready to get back to normal. I wasn't expecting what happened next.

I was assaulted with a staccato rhythm that seemed to excite me to no end; it was then that I noticed that there was a tickle in my throat that just wouldn't go away. Before I knew what I was doing, I took off in search of the sound. I caught a glimpse of my parents as they made their way down the hall. After that, everything became a blur; my conscious mind was no longer there.

Finally, when I came to my senses I was met with a massacre.

Both of my parents were on the floor of our hallway, their necks in odd angles and their eyes glassy. I made my way closer to them to figure out what was wrong with them; but was met lifeless eyes and bodies, their necks torn and scratched.

I leapt back horrified. I didn't understand; they were alive! I just saw them! I quickly looked around, and noticed something that was even more disturbing. My hands were covered in blood. I whipped around and was met with my reflection in the hallway mirror by out coat closet.

My clothes were splattered with blood and dirt, echoing the chaos running amuck in my head. My mouth was stained red and something was poking out from behind by top lip. My eyes widened with realization.

_Fangs_.

I couldn't believe what I was seeing at first. Myths, legends, and tall tales from movies, and scary stories told to children kept replaying through my head. _But they were just stories, right?_ The disbelief washed through me, but then my logical mind kicked in. Flashes of my attack, raced through my mind, albeit a little murky, like looking through a dirty camera lens.

_Cold._

_Surprisingly infinite strength._

_Two points on my neck._

_Suction._

_Fire flowing through my veins._

_Hell._

For some reason, seeing the fangs and the memories all at once triggered something inside me that screamed _run_!

For once in my life, well, my afterlife, I listened to _my_ instincts, _my_ thoughts, and made the only decision I felt I could.

It was time to leave.

Glancing around, trying not to focus on the empty shells of my parents, I headed to my bedroom.

And that was my last true memory of my home. I took the only thing that reminded me of happier times: a pendant that my parents had given me for my past birthday with all of our birthstones embedded in it. It would be a reminder of where I came from and what I had lost, and I would _never_ forget.

Well, that was a couple decades ago.

During my wandering across the country, I gradually learned of my origin as a vampire from fellow members of my species, and the methods that I used to survive. Surprisingly, there was more of _my_ kind than I had ever anticipated, but thinking about it, I guess it would explain so many of the _unsolved_ murders in the human news… I would run across nomads like myself and I would make some connections, even vampires could become a little stir crazy from lack of contact, but nothing too lasting while I was getting my urges under control.

When I was finally capable of taking care of myself and my bloodlust, I tried to blend in as best as I could for a while, but the resentment that I felt for all of the rules of society for even getting me into this situation, without parents and disdain for other people, angered me.

I couldn't take it anymore.

I would go on a spree if I was hungry enough, but of course I would move on to remain inconspicuous.

In hindsight, I guess my transformation eliminated whatever conscience I probably had when I had been human. At first I would get strange pangs of some sort of emotion during my hunts, but over the years, they became few and far between until I was devoid of them all together. I was a calculating machine, proficient with my kills, feeding as often as necessary.

This went on for a couple of years until I read a story in the local paper in the town that I was staying in. It absolutely astounded me.

We vampires were no longer a secret. Apparently, a doctor vampire had performed 'acts of bravery,' when a building caught fire in Chicago and our species was now front page news.

This revelation opened new doors for my limitless future in my mind, and that epiphany actually gave me something to look forward to, besides the thrill of the hunt.

I could be what I was with the rest of the population with no fear of threats… but it unfortunately came with a price. The majority of our kind, including myself, fed on human blood, and that wasn't deemed acceptable.

The alternative _allowed_ for us would be to feed off of _animals_.

Were they insulting us? In what way, shape, or form would the scent of animal blood be appealing to us? I was appalled to think that they were trying to curb our appetites, as far as I was concerned, anyone who crossed my path was fair game, and there was no way they could change my mind.

I decided to learn more about the man that abruptly changed the type of existence that I had grown accustomed to and was flabbergasted at what I found.

Carlisle Cullen shunned his nature in the worst way, and betrayed his kind when he agreed to the terms that the humans had designated for us to follow.

Who were they to dictate our nature? What gave them the authority over us? _We _were on the top of the natural food chain. They should be wary of us and bend to our will. That would be the _only_ rule that would apply in my mind.

I followed Carlisle Cullen in the newspapers, internet, basically anything that was connected to the media. What I read made me sick.

He wanted to work with the human government, and eventually, he became a politician that advocated 'vampiric rights.' In essence he wanted to accommodate human emulations of the perfect society.

I, however, disagreed. Well, that would be putting it mildly.

Truthfully, I wanted the society to change drastically, ridding the world of the convoluted and absolute ridiculousness of the current social structures in place.

While I was keeping up with Carlisle Cullen in the news, I also felt the need to research his 'family' so to speak. Apparently, he had changed others and welcomed them with open arms. My first thought was that they could potentially become allies in my quest for social reform.

Of course, my hopes were dashed when I learned that they were in agreement with them. They thought hunting animals would be a better use of their time. We were designed to take humans, our looks, scents, even how we sounded were supposed to lure people by the truck load. Why on earth would they want to give up the thrill of playing with their food's emotions for the most dull, watered-down version of what we were truly capable of?

With that mindset, I decided then and there that this thought process shouldn't be allowed to continue.

I had a plan.

I decided that researching more about the Cullen family would be the best way to get my plan underway. I made many trips to libraries and newspaper stands, and actually watched news channels through the windows of human houses, trying to soak up as much information as I possibly could about them.

Although I didn't find any indication that I would receive support in from of his family, I did learn some interesting things about certain members of the family that would be beneficial to know to move forward with my reform.

There were seven members of the Cullen family, and they each held a special place within the campaign they had designed once Carlisle let it slip what they were. Carlisle and Esme were the First Vampire Couple so to speak, and while they were important politically, I didn't find any distinguishing features that would pose a threat to my opposing campaign.

Next were the 'children' of the family. Emmett and Rosalie Hale-Cullen together was an intimidating couple to say the least. Emmett was massive, and he seemed to be capable of super strength, which wouldn't matter if numerous people took him down. Yes, I was that far ahead in my plan. Rosalie, while gorgeous to some, I highly doubted she would put up a huge fight in my quest. Jasper and Alice Whitlock-Cullen was an interesting pair in the papers. They seemed to be more mysterious than the rest of the family, which concerned me. Little more than the mention of their names and their purpose at press junkets were printed or recorded, and that could potentially throw a wrench in my plans.

And that left the only lone member of the family: Edward Anthony Masen Cullen. He seemed to be the estranged black sheep of the family. He was only present in the back history of the family, never at their appearances, but he was mentioned. However, just his name and the choice information that the Cullens divulged in brief comments were the only thing that I could find out about him, except for the record of his 'death.'

He and the Whitlocks would be problematic to me… but I would cross that road when I got to it.

Months went by and my plan began to take motion. I would travel to numerous cities, both in Canada and the United States, mainly staying near the border, changing choice people that I came across, and _actually_ stayed with them, teaching them my ways, and encouraging their feelings of resentment for the human race. Of course, there was some bonding that had to take place in order to gain their trust, but in reality I knew that I could only rely on myself in the end, there just wasn't any doubt on that fact. I had trusted others before and it had seriously bitten me in the ass.

Riley, my right hand man, was incredibly devoted to me. He was my first acknowledged conversion. He was my personal lap dog; he would steal anything, say anything, and_ kill_ anything that I wanted just so he could see me happy. I sent him on scouting for more candidates that would prove useful in taking control of the chaotic situation that we vampires had found ourselves in.

After a few weeks, I had amassed a small band of newborns that were under my complete control, and I had met with other nomads that had the same mentality. Together our coalition formed a new coven, and after some slight consideration, I decided it would be best that we would call ourselves the Volturi. My Italian heritage had been important to me in my human life if my failing memories served me right, so it seemed fitting to be named that.

With that technicality out of the way, my focus was back to increasing our numbers. A couple nights ago, Riley gave me some different news than I was used to hearing: he had been interrupted. I gave him the once over, and was surprised to see that he was roughed up a bit.

"Who the hell did this to you?" I was seething, we didn't have time to be interrupted by some nobody. I was on a schedule and I didn't need these petty problems distracting me from my main goal.

He visibly shook with anger; he still wasn't _completely_ in control with his overwhelming emotions, but he was making progress, in spite of the short time he had been present in this life. He let loose a growl before he answered, "I was stopped by another vampire, and his human pet."

This was surprising; I couldn't believe that a vampire would actually want the company of a human, what was the purpose, unless he was saving it for a special occasion meal…

My interest was instantly piqued. "Did you know him?"

His brow furrowed for a fraction of a second, and then he seemed to recall something. His answer was full of nerves and excitement. "Y-yes he resembled the description of the last Cullen—Edward. He was with a girl; she seemed very comfortable with him and him with her. He was territorial; he kept pushing me back, away from the more populated areas and wouldn't let me anywhere near the girl. I think his pet means a lot more to him than just a meal. Their scents were mixed together so strongly, like they spend a lot of time together." He continued on, "I think he knew me from somewhere, he acted like he had seen me before, but I don't think he could have. I promise I was being as careful as possible."

My unneeded breath left in a whoosh. Finally I had something to work with! I now had a way to destroy the vampiric political family from the inside out. Cullen had inadvertently given me the tool for both his and his family's demise with his actions towards Riley. A secondary plan emerged in my head, the steps unfolding in quick succession. It would put me ahead of schedule in the grand scheme of things, if it all went correctly, but the pet would have to go first. She was his weakness, and that would be my advantage.

I turned and went straight to the office of the abandoned building that we were currently staying at and found a pen and some paper. I quickly jotted a 'warning' note, yet I had no intention of actually following the rules that I had outlined, they would be the perfect ploy to get him to both cooperate and would instill in him a false sense of security.

I flitted back to Riley and instructed him to find Cullen's pet and hand deliver the letter. With a gust of air past me, he was gone.

I considered the other part of Riley's rant. What he had said confused me to no end. How would Cullen know him? Riley had recently been turned and when he was human he resided in a different city, near the east coast, and I had seen no sign of him there. That thought stopped me in my tracks as I paced around. Could it be possible that Cullen had a talent that wasn't even normal for vampires? I had assumed that the Whitlocks were something different when I first tried to find information about them, but the absence of anything useful to me pertaining to them raised some alarm in my head. Now that Edward had finally made his appearance, and that he could have the capability of destroying my plans with some unknown power, I was actually a little nervous.

I needed to find out more about them, but I just didn't see how that was possible.

I knew that sending some of my recruits to the Cullens would be unwise on two points based off the newborns' reaction to the human population. They wouldn't be able to control themselves; they would always be on edge, ready to drain the first blood-filled body they could find. This would create two different problems for me. It would make the Cullens extremely suspicious, and would probably leave in order to do damage control to the vampiric image; the media attention would make it hard to get close to them again if they got away. And they probably would team up with the human government to investigate who was behind it, making it even harder for us to move around the country.

I had a lot of things to ponder, and the extra thinking and plotting I was doing was making me extremely thirsty.

And that is how I found myself stalking the drunken human and draining him before he even registered what was happening to him.

I clung to his limp body, making sure that he wasn't going anywhere until I was finished. _Like he even had a chance of escaping_ I thought to myself as I swallowed. The blood was heaven gushing down my throat, relieving the itch and burn. It was the best cough syrup for our kind, if we were capable of getting a cough, that is.

When he was finally dry, I leaned back and looked at the two little puncture marks on his neck and smiled. However, two little holes in his neck would draw too much attention to the vampires that shared my diet in the local area and that wouldn't be good. So I had a little fun. With a snarl I dove back into his neck, becoming the animal I am, tearing and ripping through his flesh, mauling him. After a few minutes, I leaned back again, and gazed at my handiwork. _Perfect, just like an animal attack_. I quickly picked the human up and dashed outside into the night.

Quickly taking in my surroundings, I made my way stealthily through the back roads and alleys, dodging humans left and right, with them unaware how close they were to death as they felt the breeze of my passing. Finding a camp ground I dumped the human's body on the ground, chuckling when I heard the thump of his skull against a rock. The authorities would find him in the morning and by the time they had some more details about his death, we would be long gone, searching for more candidates, and hiding out once more until our plan was accomplished.

I dashed quickly back to the outskirts of civilization, and then slowed down to a leisurely stroll my stomach still a little slosh-y from my large meal. By the time I made it back to the dark, condemned building, Riley was back.

His eyes shined with anticipation and he seemed to vibrate with energy. "I did it! I did it! She got the note! I had to wake her up but she got it!"

I rolled my eyes, and made my way towards him, cooing him and making sure that he felt like he was the most important thing to me in that moment, humoring him until he calmed down.

I leaned into his ear, and whispered, "I want you to go back, and when morning arrives, take out Cullen's pet. Make sure you leave your scent _everywhere_, create a trail that leads him back here, we'll take care of him then. I'll make sure you're rewarded handsomely for your trouble." Just to add the last nail to the coffin, I pressed up against him and purred. Just like the puppet he was he immediately disappeared again, ready to carry out his chores.

Although I couldn't sleep, I felt a little weary mentally, so I sat down on the ground. All of this organizing and carrying out of plans were starting to catch up to me, but I just had to remain focused to get what I wanted.

The humans thought that they were in charge in this situation. They couldn't be any more wrong, but the old adage was ignorance is bliss, right? Well they would learn soon enough of their mistakes and I would be standing there watching as their world crumbled around them.

I wouldn't play fair either, after all their rules no longer applied.

* * *

Well, any thoughts as to whom our villain is? Did you enjoy this different POV? You know the drill, I like to hear your thoughts too! Thanks a bunch!

-gg


	14. Chapter 14: Tribal Origins & a Car Crash

Hey guys! I'm terribly sorry that this chapter took so damn long to get out. I've had a busy couple of weeks with a graduation, birthdays, and a severe case of writer's block. I had to go back and change things in this chapter many times, and I'm finally at a place where I can be happy with it.

Thank you to all of my readers and those who gave me some awesome reviews, I truly appreciate it. I guess you guys like my villain huh? I'm still taking guesses for the identity, so feel free to take a crack at it…

Remember, I don't own these characters, and if you don't know who does, what rock do you live under?

Ladies and gentlemen, I give you chapter 14!

* * *

**The Light in His Eyes**

_Chapter 14: Tribal Origins and a Car Crash_

* * *

**EPOV**

As I escaped the wrath of Charlie Swan by climbing out of Bella's bedroom window, I replayed what had transpired between us in the past hour or so.

_Gazing at Bella's earnest eyes I contemplated what she was telling me, what her plans would entail. I was surprised that Bella more about the supernatural than I had originally thought. Quileute legends were actually a topic that I was slightly familiar with, having learned about them from Carlisle myself. He had shown me through his memories the night he discovered that our kind weren't the only things that went bump in the night…_

* * *

_Apparently, Carlisle had done some traveling in the Northern corner of the United States during the time he had spent alone, before he found me in my sickly state._

_As he wandered the forests in Canada and the United States back in the late 1890's, he stumbled upon the territory of the local Native American tribe, and caused quite a stir._

_He had been hunting, searching for some small relief from the fire that had become steadily more painful as the days past his last feeding progressed. He was scouting the surrounding areas for a place for himself to settle down as well; almost unheard of at that time, because of the low profile we vampires had to keep in hopes of escaping public notice. However Carlisle was already set in his way about his lifestyle, he knew what he wanted in his infinite life, and the abstinence when it came to human blood would be paramount to him accomplishing this._

_As the trees rushed past him, he finally caught the scent of some deer and made a beeline for them. As he got closer to his goal, he also noticed another less appealing scent, something that actually slowed his pursuit._

_His gait slowed even further, resembling the pace of a human; his senses were on high alert. He had never encountered such a scent, and the curiosity was too much to ignore. He ducked down, the instinct to hide from a potential threat working over time. He stalked forward, the unpleasant smell seeming to increase in intensity as he came closer._

_What he was met with was unquestionably something that even he, a vampire, had never considered to be a possibility before. A tribe of Native Americans were amongst the foliage, hiding themselves within the color palate of the surrounding trees, using dyes and their quiet, yet their efforts were wasted on Carlisle, he could still see them. What struck him as odd though; was the fact that they were traveling with very _large_ wolves, and they didn't seem intimidated at all by them. In fact, it was as if they were working together in their hunt, completely cooperative and not hostile in the least._

_Cautiously, one of the wolves raised its head, its nose in the air, scenting a change in the air. The human leader looked around as he took in the wolves actions, and glanced at some of his companions. To Carlisle's astonishment, the wolves seemed to understand the leader's wishes and stepped forward, protecting their human counterparts, their hunt momentarily forgotten._

_The leader spoke aloud._

"_Come forth stranger, we know you are out there. Show yourself before we flush you out; that would not end well for you." He stood tall, asserting his authority; showing that his tolerance would be very subjective._

_Carlisle was reluctant to step into the clear, but he had little choice; he was pacifist when it came to violence, not to mention, they already knew exactly where he was._

_Slowly, so as not to startle them into action, he made his way to meet the leader in the center of the clearing._

_The wolves were obviously wary of Carlisle; the growls resonated through his memories and echoed in my mind._

_Finally the two men were face to face; earth brown eyes met ice blue and they regarded each other for quite some time. Carlisle broke the silence._

_With an expression of confidence, he held his hands in front of him in a gesture of peace. "Greetings, my name is Carlisle Cullen, and I'm grateful for this peaceful exchange. I'm honored to meet you and your people." Really, he was at a loss for words, he had never encountered something like this._

_Their leader gave his men and the wolves a cursory glance before speaking again. "Greetings to you as well, I am Chief Ephraim Black and we are warriors of the Quileute tribe. You do not seem to be of this world my friend. You do not move like us and there seems to be a predatory air about you, yet you look like a man." He looked confused, yet his stance never wavered, maintaining an image of strength for his warriors to emulate._

_Astounded by his bluntness, Carlisle had blurted out, "You seem to be supernatural as well my friend."_

_After a few tense moments, both Carlisle and Ephraim's stances relaxed. Curiosity got the best of Carlisle once more, and he gathered his courage to address the pink elephant in the surrounding trees. "I know your warriors are wary of me, as they should be based on instinct alone, yet I promise you that I pose no threat to your people. As you have already deduced I am not what you would consider an ordinary man. I became something considered to be a nightmare in this present time when my father led a crusade against the many demons plaguing the minds and streets of the people in my hometown a number of years ago._

"_My father wasn't a holy man in the sense that he was a priest. His father had been, but my father's passion in life was more artistic than anything; he was an architect. Although he wasn't as involved in religion as his father had been, he was just very devout to his faith, and instilled that loyalty in me; making sure I upheld the ideals of our beliefs. Everything in life had a religious context and I was taught lessons daily. Many of them about the righteousness of man and our solemn duty to protect those around us from the terrors placed upon the earth by the Devil himself._

"_Well, one night, our faith was truly tested. Gossip among the townspeople was that there was something lurking in the shadows at night. Some of the local beggars that had walked the streets in search of scraps had gone missing, leaving no traces whatsoever. Many believed that a demon had made his way to our town and was feasting on the souls of the poor and the hungry._

"_Our town took several precautions curfews were set up, even for men. No one could travel alone. Yet the disappearances started to become more renown as victims of higher social standing started climbing in numbers as well._

"_On that night, word got out that there was a sighting. That by itself was shocking, but there was one more detail: the demon had taken the form of a man._

"_The church of my town had ordered that every able man of our faith would prove his worth by hunting down the monster and destroying it._

"_Of course, my father had persuaded me to accompany him in the mob that had formed, and I couldn't refuse, lest I dishonor him in the eyes of our community. So we set out with our rudimentary weapons of guns, knives and lanterns. I learned that those objects would really mean nothing in the grand scheme of things._

"_My father and I were split up when they divided into different groups. He was taken to another part of town, and I was led towards the nearby woods. I kept glancing back, watching the lights of the town grow fainter and fainter as I walked through the weeds and undergrowth._

"_Quite honestly, I didn't think I would be one of the unlucky few that would find the monster, but my group did. I guess that was how the demon had evaded notice for so long. After what was probably about half an hour, I caught movement out of the corner of my eye._

"_Turning quickly, I saw him. He couldn't be more than twenty-five years of age, and yet his eyes held the knowledge and experience of someone much older. He was standing still, which I found odd, because I assumed he would want to escape the wrath of whoever found him. Suddenly, a noise that I would never forget pierced through the nighttime silence. It was a growl. That was when I was sure I had come face to face with a devil._

"_The next thing I knew, he was gone, and there was something cool pressed against my throat. I didn't even have time to fight back; there was nothing I could do. Two searing hot points broke through my skin and I began to scream. I felt a suction on my neck, and after what felt like an eternity, I heard someone crashing through the trees. There was a scuffle, but then the sounds receded into the distance, leaving me alone. By now my senses were dulled so badly, that the only thing that I could discern besides a burning pain was my ever slowing heartbeat._

"_I suffered forever and a day before my heartbeat stopped altogether. I had kept quiet, becoming introverted in my shocked state. I awoke to a thirst burning in my throat. It was so unbearable, and water that collected in the hollows in the ground that had developed from the last rain wouldn't satisfy that I think I went mad for quite some time. I wandered around the woods, disoriented and frightened for days, questioning why no one had come to find me. Finally I snapped after hearing a rhythmic thump and without thought I pounced on the source. When I came back to myself, I realized that I was covered in blood, and my throat didn't burn as intensely as before._

"_I couldn't believe it at first, but after hours of trying to reason with the logic that I had learned in my previous life, I resigned myself into thinking that I had become what my father and I had feared most: a demonic creature. _

"_At that revelation, I decided then and there that I wouldn't be what my family had always feared, I would be better than that, I would retain whatever remained of my humanity and live above my instincts._

"_I later learned that I had been deemed another victim of the monster that had terrorized my town, and that they believed that I was a lost soul. And unfortunately for my town, the monster stayed a bit longer, before disappearing into the mist before the weather turned warm and the sun shined more brightly again. My family had mourned me and I was forgotten to the sands of time._

"_To make this tedious story a little shorter, suffice to say that I have been traveling around the world, gaining experience and control, and cementing my philosophy of preserving human life, despite the obvious obstacles I have had to face." After his declaration, Carlisle refocused on Ephraim's gaze. He was very still, with a contemplating expression on his face._

_At first Carlisle felt self-conscious for once since his change as the Native American's eyes bore into his. Finally, when Carlisle was sufficiently uncomfortable, he was graced with the answers to his questions about this particular tribe._

"_A Cold One… I never thought I would see the day that our ancestors' stories of our creation would have actual confirmation…" At this the Chief, shook his head and sank down to the ground, his warriors following suit, yet the wolves maintained their stances, only adjusting their positions so they would be closer to the men. As a sign of respect, Carlisle felt that he should equalize himself with these people, so he dropped from his semi-defensive crouch to sit in a patch of grass in the mud._

"_You seem to sense that we are not considered normal by human standards as well. We were not born regular men. As warriors of our tribe, and through our lineages, we were entrusted with our people's safety. During the time when boys become men, some of the children became more aggravated and irritable. They soon started developing a higher body temperature, refusing to wear some of our more traditional garments, saying the heat would be unbearable._

"_Then one day, one off our top warriors, Sam Uley became angry, and soon in his place was standing a wolf. It was huge, much larger than a full grown man, and it would not leave when we tried to shoo it away. Eventually, it made its way over to one of our young women that had been courted by Sam, and laid at her feet. Although we feared for her safety, she said that she did not fear the beast. It was a couple of hours later when the wolf disappeared, and Sam was with her._

"_We had the ability to change our forms, just as our ancestors insisted we could. Soon more of our boys and even in one instance a girl started to transform into wolves. We knew we couldn't fear our own people, so they were welcomed with open arms of course. Another astonishing thing was that the warriors capable of changing their forms also seemed to stop aging. Years have gone by since we have discovered these abilities and as you can see we all look fairly young._

"_What always puzzled me is why these changes occurred in the first place. Unfortunately for one of our families, we found our rather quickly. One day, one of our elders was out by himself, reconnecting with nature after being cooped up for so long during the winter months. It was a Cold One, a being that fed on blood as you do Carlisle. The only difference between him and you is that you refused to take a life and he did without hesitation._

"_It was during his memorial that I realized that the transformations coincided with the appearance of the Cold One. Well, our warriors wouldn't stand for his loss without some retribution, so they set out to rid the world of that devil._

"_With their enhanced senses, they were able to take down the Cold One within a couple of days, tracking and ripping him to shreds. We didn't know the other attributes of his nature so we disposed of the body through fire, and went back to our daily lives…_

* * *

The chief went on to acquaint Carlisle with their customs, their homes, and more of their stories. I remember when he told me about the strange shape shifters when I was still confined indoors away from the general population as I got my bloodlust in check.

Bella's faith in the Quileutes wasn't unfounded, but it still disturbed me to some extent that she knew so much of the world beyond the human norm, it couldn't be good to be that knowledgeable about such things. However, I agreed to her reasoning because I thought the tribe could protect her from anything this nomadic coven might potentially throw our way.

Thinking about the rest of our visit, if I could blush, I probably would have. I didn't mean to be so forward; I just couldn't help myself. Kissing Bella always brought on a rush of euphoria that couldn't be compared to the pleasures I had when I was still human.

I knew the game we were playing was dangerous, mostly for me. Charlie was only a couple yards away from Bella's bedroom, but I just couldn't find it in me to care at that point. She was so scared and was seeking reassurance from me; I could deny her nothing.

However, when I got closer to her, her scent was overwhelming me, the slight tinge of fear rousing my protective instincts, and the thought of losing her in any way, shape, or form was too devastating to think about, so I just let nature (if there was anything natural about me) take its course and I covered her with my body on her bed.

I couldn't close enough, even though our mouths were virtually melded together, but I _wanted_ to. Finally, some tension was released when my fangs dropped, but her moans of encouragement threw me over the edge.

I practically begged her for her permission to mark her porcelain skin, and by some miracle she agreed. I kissed up and down her throat and found the pulsing beat underneath her skin. I couldn't contain my excitement, plunging my teeth into her.

For the first time, in my second existence, I tasted human blood. Well, I can't really call it human blood, as Bella was my angel, my better half, the one thing that I never even _hoped_ to dream about (if I was capable of doing so).

I took a few pulls off of Bella, but released her from my love bite and sealed the two small puncture wounds with a few drops of venom carefully.

Just thinking about giving Bella a love bite had me anxious to give her another, but I had to control myself, to keep the pretense for Charlie that I was the upmost respectable person dating his daughter. I quickly made my way to Tanya's house.

Of course she was there, freshly showered, her shampoo's scent permeating throughout the bottom floor of the house.

Knowing she could probably scent Bella on me already, I trudged forward for the interrogation that was sure to follow as soon as I set foot in the living room.

Glancing away from the television, Tanya readjusted her position on the couch to face the loveseat. Taking her actions as an indication of where to sit I complied reluctantly. Surprisingly, I couldn't hear anything from Tanya's mind. It was actually a bit unnerving, since I had only encountered this type of mental isolation from my family, and Bella. Apparently, Tanya had learned the art of evading my gift.

_Great, here it comes_. I sighed and looked at Tanya expectantly.

Grinning almost to the point of looking like a maniacal cartoon villain, the opening question began my humiliation.

"So you smell like you got to know Bella a little bit better, at least a little more intimately than me…" She wiggled her eyebrows, but she was so excited that she didn't keep her speed in check and they seemed to cause them to look a blond, fuzzy, smoke painted onto her pale forehead.

I groaned and decided to give her the abridged version of the night's events, trying to omit anything that could be used as ammunition at a later time.

Fed up with my evasiveness, Tanya started to pout. "You're not being fair; I want to know all of the gory details!"

Just as I was about to answer her in the most sarcastic way possible, my phone rang. I looked at the screen and was at a loss for words.

_Alice._

She never called me unless there was something that she felt was important and at a time like this I wasn't the most optimistic person I could be.

I flipped the phone open and placed it near my ear.

"Edward, I've sent you a passport and extra sunscreen, you must get to Bella's mother. The package should arrive in a couple of minutes, I had Jenks deliver them."

Confusion swept over me. We had to go to _Florida_? "Why do we need to go to Florida Alice?" I was pacing at this point, my anxiety getting the best of me. Tanya had stood up and gotten closer, trying to calm me down, but the sense of foreboding was just too much, I couldn't quiet my overactive imagination; it was racing away into different scenarios that wouldn't be pretty.

"Edward," Tanya whispered, trying to get my attention, but it was fruitless.

"All I know is Edward that I have to get you to Florida, I can't get any clear pictures when I try to see you on the path you're on now, the only time I can see you and Bella in one piece is if you're on the way to Florida. You couldn't be out in the sunlight for too long, but I think you could make it work…" Her voice trailed off with indecision and expectancy.

I pinched the bridge of my nose, and closed my eyes, trying to sift through the thoughts racing through my head.

_What does this mean? The Quileutes can't protect us? What about Bella's mother? She won't like me with her daughter at _all_…_

Sighing, I replied, "Alright Alice, we'll do this your way… I can't risk Bella…" I glanced over at Tanya and her eyes were wide with anxiety.

"Please just do this Edward… I know this will work." Alice was talking to me earnestly, trying to keep me level-headed.

There was a knock on the door, so I said my goodbye to Alice and went to the door. A man dressed in a thermal jacket with the hood pulled up and jeans met my eyes. He quickly thrust a box into my hands and took off to a worn down sedan and drove off.

I opened the box and pulled out the passport and sunscreen. Pocketing them quickly, I turned to Tanya.

"Edward, what on Earth-"

I took her by the shoulders and quickly cut her off. "Tanya, you have to promise me, take care of the Chief, Bella and I can't stay here. My sister said we weren't safe. I'm going to Florida, just please, take care of Charlie, Bella would never forgive me for endangering her father, and she can't stay with him."

Tanya hissed, and her pupils dilated, her defensive instincts kicking in, but I could tell that she was still rational. I shook her one more time. "Tanya!"

Her eyes focused back on me and nodded curtly.

I nodded in return and turned quickly and headed out the door. Foregoing any vehicle, I ran towards Bella's house.

In what felt like no time at all, I was at the front door, pressing the doorbell button relentlessly. I didn't give a damn if I broke it at this point; my first and only priority was Bella.

The door swung open to reveal a flustered and angry Charlie with an almost desperate-looking Bella. Her eyes were wide and slightly puffy, like she had been crying earlier. My heart sank at the sight, but I had to push those feelings away, I had to remain focused.

"What the Hell do you want Edward?" The Chief was clearly not too happy to see me.

"Chief I-"

"Charlie stop it! He didn't do anything wrong!"

Bella was clearly ready to fight her father for me, and in some way I was flattered and appalled all the same, but we didn't have time for this.

"Bella, we can't do this right now. Go get your passport!" At the word passport, the ire left both of their faces, being replaced with confusion.

"What? Edward what's going on?" Bella rushed to my side, her gaze boring into my eyes, as if trying to get the answer telepathically.

"Bella you're not safe here, we have to get to Florida, my sister said there wasn't another alternative."

"Now just a second Edward, you're not taking my daughter away from here…"

I turned to Charlie and looked him dead in the eye. "Chief Swan, I know that I have caused you and Bella a lot of grief and trouble, but I can't just sit back and leave her here defenseless." I tried to convey how desperate I was to keep his daughter safe.

His thoughts were almost incoherent. _I can't trust him, look what he has brought into our lives. But he is so shaken up, if he's this worried, there may be some warrant to his precautions… But he could just be saying that because he wants some _alone_ time with Bella… Lord help me…_

He kept his gaze trained on mine for the longest time, and I could see him warring with himself. After an eternity he gave a small nod of his head, and spoke aloud, "I'm trusting you with the most important thing in my life. I never thought I could do that. Don't make me regret it." He turned to Bella, and said, "I'll just tell your school you have the flu… they won't question me. And I know that you're old enough to make your own decision Bells… Besides, your mother has been badgering me to get you to talk to her. I know she could keep you safe." Bella merely rolled her eyes. I knew her relationship with her mother hadn't been the best… He continued, "Well I was going to see Jacob and Billy later, but now I don't know what to do now, I was so looking forward to the Vitamin R and deep fried fish…"I knew he was trying to lighten the situation, but his humor fell flat.

I glanced at Bella and shot my gaze towards the stares and she nodded, though her eyes still held a little apprehension. She quickly dashed up the stairs and came back to the front door after a few minutes. She practically threw the passport at me, which I promptly put in my pocket with my passport and sun block. She then put her hands on her hips, obviously waiting for an explanation.

I sighed. Bella was strong willed; and I knew she wouldn't rush to her mother without a good explanation. Sighing one more time, I trudged on, "My sister Alice, you remember her right?" She nodded and gestured for me to continue. "Well, she called me as soon as I got back to Tanya's. She rarely calls me unless she thinks that some foresight will be helpful in a situation, and she thought now would be a good time.

"She doesn't think that we are safe here, and for some reason, her visions have been sketchy when it comes to the both of us…" I trailed off as Bella blushed and I looked at her questioningly.

She shrugged. "It's just a little odd thinking that _someone's watching me…_" She started singing the jingle from a car insurance commercial that I would like to forget, but it made me smile none the less. Bella always did something different from what I expected.

The gravity of the situation fell upon us again, and I reached behind the front door to snatch her keys from the key ring, locked the door, and started to tow her towards her truck. She resisted a little, and I looked back at her. "What about clothes and other things?"

I shook my head at her. "I'm sorry Bella, there is no time; we need to get into the air soon. Alice didn't specify how long we could stay here safely, so I'd rather be on a plane sooner than later."

I held the keys up and she snatched them out of my hand sighing, but getting into her truck. With a thunderous start, we were on our way towards the airport. We took the 101 around the Olympic National Park because Bella wanted to see the cool, green covered land one last time before going to Florida.

While we were passing the Eld Inlet, a couple miles away from Olympia and the connection to the 5 freeway, a movement on the right side of the windshield caught my eye. Suddenly I heard a mental voice that I had hoped that I would never hear again.

_Riley_.

The only thing that was coherent enough to understand was one recurring sentence.

_Do what she says and she'll reward you. Do what she says and she'll reward you. Do what she says and she'll reward you….._

Before I could make sense of anything, there was a jolt to the side of the truck and the world turned sideways.

"Edward!" I turned in my seat, unbuckled Bella and drew her into my arms, kicking out the passenger side window. Using my speed to my advantage, I pushed off of the cushion and propelled us onto the street before the truck tumbled into the ice-covered water.

I scanned around myself quickly, listening for any other attack, yet I heard none. Apparently Riley didn't stick around to see us off; he was too preoccupied with returning to _her_ whoever she was.

Willing my fangs to retract I glanced down at Bella. Her heart was hammering so hard I thought she was going to go into cardiac arrest. Her eyes were wide, pupils dilated, and I momentarily thought I could fall into them they were so huge.

I scanned over the rest of her body. Once I was satisfied she wasn't hurt, I asked her anxiously, "Bella, can you hear me? Are you alright?"

She didn't respond. I shook her as gently as I could, trying to contain my fear. I asked her again, "Bella?"

Finally, she came around. "Edward?" She was gasping for air, but I couldn't stop myself from relaxing at the sound of her voice. She licked her lips, "How much longer until we get to the airport?" Her voice was a little shaky, probably from the adrenaline rush.

I looked toward the road and found a posted estimation for the next town distance, and made a guess of my own. I took a quick breath before answering, "It's quite a ways Bella, but if we run, it won't take too long…" I didn't want to impose on her, I could get us a rental car, but I didn't want to leave a paper trail, just in case the Volturi came back, unconvinced we were dead.

She mulled it over, before clutching herself to me tighter. She gave a little shiver when she tucked her head under my chin, but that was all the encouragement I needed. I stood up with her in my arms and started to run on the shoulder of the road.

As the miles flew behind us as my feet pounded against the ground, I pondered what would meet us in Florida.

_Well I guess it's only fair that I meet her other parent…_ Still I couldn't stop the shudder from running up my spine.

_This is not going to be a piece of cake, that's for sure._

* * *

Aw poor Edward! I would really freak out about meeting someone's parents, especially if I _knew_ that they weren't going to like me… That would suck majorly.

Well, I hope you guys enjoyed the little time travel portion of this chapter, and that it filled in some gaps for you. Did you like getting some Carlisle action (and not in a dirty way)?

Oh and I hope this was enough information about how Edward felt about that love bite, he's a passionate one, isn't he?

Anyway, I think I'm going to turn in now, considering it's almost two in the morning, so please leave a review, they're almost as much fun as reading the actual chapter! Thanks a bunch!

-gg


	15. Chapter 15: Into the Lion's Den

Hi everyone! I know, I know, I suck at updating. I am truly sorry that it took me this long to update, it was never my intention to leave you guys hanging, but life has been hectic lately. As a matter of fact, I'm currently helping my sister move to a city two hundred miles away from our house so she can go to the college of her choice. Yeah, so that is one of the many things that were taking up my time… So please don't hunt me down!

I wanted to thank my readers, reviewers, and anyone who added me on alert, your support is greatly appreciated.

As always, I don't own anything Twilight, if I did I would have a lot more money to buy my drug of choice: chocolate, which I have been craving for days now…

Anyway, here it is _finally_, chapter 15!

* * *

**The Light in His Eyes**

_Chapter 15: Into the Lion's Den_

* * *

**BPOV**

I clasped my hands against the paper cup, looking at the airport café's logo and the other designs they decided to print on the cup for ascetic appeal. The heat from liquid inside made my hands tingle as the circulation was restored.

Edward had ran from the scene of our accident all the way to the airport, his nerves getting to him, because he pushed himself harder than I had ever seen him do before. It was a little scary to be honest, I felt like the sheer momentum would pull my hair out from its roots and my eyes would dry out from the draft.

After about twenty minutes of non-stop cold, Edward finally slowed down to a human pace. My limbs were still locked around his frame in a death grip, and it had been slightly painful to disengage myself from him.

We walked the short distance to the airport entrance, and Edward took one look at me, and towed me to the nearest facility in the food court and demanded that I get something warm to eat or drink. I resisted at first and requested to go to the bathroom instead. The adrenaline rush finally trickled out of my system, and my bladder raised a red flag, we were talking thirty seconds tops.

Begrudgingly, Edward walked with me to the bathrooms. I drew the line when he wanted to come inside with me, "Edward I know I'm clumsy, but I'm not technically handicapped. I'm a big girl and I can do this on my own." He growled quietly for a bit as I tried to keep myself from peeing my pants, but finally agreed. I knew he was just trying to ensure my safety, but I had to set some boundaries. I was his girlfriend, not a pet or baby to attend to.

After I got the biggest relief taken care of, I washed my hands and glanced at myself in the dingy mirror. I looked like Hell froze over. Literally, my nose and ears were red from being in the cold for so long and my hair was wind-blown and tangled from the ride here. I sighed and tried to comb out the knots in my hair, trying to make myself look presentable and walked back into the airport. Of course, I was met with the largest cup of hot chocolate and a smirking boyfriend who proudly thrust it into my hands.

We had to get in line for our tickets, but thankfully the foot traffic wasn't so bad, since it was a weekday and with no holidays coming up in the near future. The woman behind the desk was so mesmerized by Edward, that it took a bit longer than usual to get our tickets due to her absolute insistence we knew every little clause about their policies.

Edward paid with a credit card, but it didn't have his last name on it, it had his human last name printed on the plastic instead. I later learned that his passport was the same way. When I questioned him about it, he acted so nonchalant, if not bored when he answered.

With an eye roll, he said in a whisper, "It's what every person on the run has done; I had to change my name on these documents to make myself harder to track. My family has been doing this for decades. If I hadn't done so in this instance, we might be facing Riley and his coven again." I got the logic after a split second. I wasn't usually this slow when it came to obvious things, but I guess the anxiety was getting to me. When we had our paperwork in order, he led us to some seats at our terminal. I kept the cup of hot chocolate in my hands, just reveling in the warmth. I took the occasional sip, and I almost moaned as the heat traveled down my throat and warmed my stomach. As the level of hot chocolate diminished in the cup, the more relaxed I became.

I think that Edward noticed this as well, and gave me a small smile, hooking his arm around my shoulders and drawing me closer to his body.

Since we didn't have time to check the departing times of the planes, we had about an hour to wait before we were allowed to board. So, like any couple that was on the run, we kept to ourselves, and didn't move too much, just enjoying each other's company. Of course, that was really for show, since Edward would reflexively scan the nearby area around our terminal every couple of minutes, of course he would make it look as inconspicuous as possible so as not to raise alarm, but I knew I had to be on my toes too.

When Edward showed up at my front door this morning, I didn't think that he was going to survive the encounter with Charlie.

To put it lightly, Charlie was not happy with me when I told him about the note. His blood pressure became so high, his face turned purple. And then there was the lecture. His voice echoed throughout the house.

"Isabella! Now do you see why he isn't good for you! God damn it! You know I sympathize with his kind, but this is just unacceptable! You're life is being threatened. How can you want to stay with someone that endangers you this way? Oh I forgot; women _love_ bad boys…" His tone had become acidic and condescending, and it broke my heart.

Edward was just so much more to me than just a boyfriend. He was my… soul mate. Even if he questioned the title since the term _soul_ came into play, I knew it. His love bite proved that. The confrontation with the Volturi wasn't Edward's fault, he was just trying to protect the humans around him… he hadn't done anything wrong.

Charlie's last statement got my back up though, and I told him so.

"Charlie! You know he isn't like that! He's been so respectful towards me, and he tried to help you with a murder case! Would a _bad boy_ do something like that?" By now I had tears in my eyes, making the house a fuzzy, blurry mess.

Charlie hated tears; he would do anything to stop me from crying on the phone when I would call him when I was still living with my mom. She and I had gotten into many spats over the years, even before the vampiric rights issue arose, and it always ended with crying. I guess I could be considered a crybaby, but what he had said had hurt a lot.

And then it happened. Charlie glanced down and froze. His hand shot forward and his fingers grazed my neck. _Shit_. I had forgotten to put some make up over the area, even though I knew it was going to bruise from Edward's… enthusiasm.

I could see his eyes cloud over, and I knew another tirade was on the horizon. I actually cringed in preparation to hear the slew of words that would destroy my eardrums. Charlie shook his head menacingly, and opened his mouth to speak…

Then Edward knocked on the door. Talk about tension. Charlie stepped back and answered the door with a scowl on his face. The news that Edward delivered was just the icing on the cake. Charlie knew we had been more intimate, my bite mark was a testament to that, and now we had a coven breathing down our necks, so much so that I wasn't safe in my home anymore. There was no way that Charlie would agree to let me go; he was just as stubborn as I was, he would 'figure something out'. But I was wrong. When Charlie finally agreed to let me go, I knew it was his way of apologizing to me for hurting me emotionally, but I think he was secretly hoping that my mother would scare Edward off. Plus he knew I was legally an adult and he couldn't tell me what to do anymore, and it would take me away from the danger here, so he just cut his losses and went to work.

And with that I was whisked away.

"Bella…" I was brought out of my musings by a melodic whisper. I glanced over and was met with worried green eyes, and I felt his hand brush against my cheek. Edward glanced over to the boarding gate, which was now being flooded with people, and I knew our time to leave had come. I leaned into his palm and nodded.

We got up from our seats and made our way to the line to enter the plane. As we passed through the gate, we turned off our cell phones, knowing full well they would ask us to once we were on board. After handing over our tickets, we made our way to our seats. I knew this was going to be a long flight, so I sunk low into my seat and leaned my head on Edward's shoulder clasping his hand in mine when he got situated.

His eyes cut to mine and he gave me a tight smile. I knew that he had a lot of worries floating around in that head of his, and I couldn't help myself, I had to offer him some comfort. So, I leaned forward and placed a kiss just to the side of his Adam's apple. There was an immediate reaction; I felt the vibration of his quiet purr resonate from the surface of his skin. I smiled against his throat, as his head bent down and I could hear a faint click. Then the points of his fangs grazed against my skin, settling over the marks they had made earlier and giving them a slight nip.

As quickly as our intimate actions began, the spell was soon broken as I felt the momentum of the plane's movement pick up as we started to take off. I was never a real fan of flying, I mean I had to do it when I was younger occasionally, traveling between my two parents. I assume that is probably why flying wasn't one of my favorite pastimes, I guess my subconscious linked those two things together and didn't like it.

After a few minutes, we were in the air. I glanced out the window, watching the gray and gloom disperse as we got farther from Forks. The plane ride wasn't too bad, aside from the children that were _not_ happy with the little coloring books and toys that the flight attendants had provided them with. No offense to parents, but when your kids scream in a confined space it is really annoying. I mean I get so annoyed that I feel like marching over and just duct taping their mouths shut for the rest of the time that I'm around them.

I think that Edward could sense my distress, and he squeezed my hand a little tighter. I glanced over to find his face fixed in an expression of understanding, but his eyes still betrayed his anxiety. We had a tough road ahead of us while we were going to be in Florida. I was still trying to figure out a way for Edward to stay with me while we were there.

My mom had been increasingly more combative when it came to vampires. Every time I was forced by Charlie or gathered the courage to call my mother, it usually ended up in a shouting match. Yeah, those phone calls devastated me; I couldn't really function immediately after hanging up. I would zone out, basically looking at nothing, and it would worry Charlie. Eventually, I would take the conversations upstairs to my room so Charlie wouldn't witness the discord firsthand, and would return when I was able to snap out of it. Charlie tried talking to me about it, but I didn't want my mother's prejudices to affect my relationship with him, we were better than that.

I was jolted out of my reverie when we touched down in Texas for our layover flight. Thankfully we didn't have to wait long to board the second plane; otherwise I'm sure Edward would have blown a gasket for sure. The amount of mental voices had to be excruciating to listen to, so I tried to give him a scalp massage, which probably would have taken some layers of scalp on a human, but he seemed to enjoy it, reaching for one of my hands and rubbing his thumb on the knuckles.

We aimlessly walked around our terminal, never stopped moving really, I guess it was just our way of calming our nerves, for what seemed like an eternity. Finally, Father Time got off his ass and pushed the hands of the clock nearest us to our departure time.

Just like before, we waited in line, turned in our tickets, and got to our seats as soon as possible. After the typical safety procedures and tension-filled take off, we were on our way to Florida. During the entire flight, Edward held my hand, and the security it brought me was heavenly. I guess I dozed off for a bit, because I woke up to a pressure on my bladder that would not be ignored. Damn hot chocolate.

I had to pry my fingers from Edward's hand from around my own just so I could get up, and I could feel his eyes on me the entire time as I walked to the little cubicle. After I was done, I flipped my hair in front of my shoulder again to hide my love bite. Satisfied that I didn't look indecent, I made my way back to Edward.

Eventually, it was time to eat on the airplane, but I just wasn't in the mood. Edward had gotten us two vegetarian meals, for which I was grateful, but I couldn't find it in me to demolish all of the fruits and veggies, so I took to his method of 'eating' human food: just push it around and make it look like you eating, but spitting it into a napkin. I knew that Edward wouldn't be happy with my new eating habits, but my nerves were just too frayed to be functioning completely normal. However he didn't say anything, but he did give me a look that said we would be talking about it later. Joy.

I think I zoned out once more, just trying to come up with a good explanation for Renee and Phil as to why I was visiting them and how to get Edward into their good graces without them finding out what he was. How could I do it? I mean I grew up in Renee's home for the majority of my childhood, so she would know I was lying, right? I guess I would have to be an Oscar-worthy actress for this trip, something that I don't think I could accomplish easily.

As the hours flew by, I finally came to a conclusion. I would just have to give my mother some of the more attention grabbing information that a parent would be concerned about: having a boyfriend, period. I just hoped it would work.

I was brought back to the present time as the plane touched down. Now the true test of my courage would begin. I know that I would rather face the Volturi with Edward than seeing my mom angry and disappointed in me; it was just evidence that children are perpetually more scared of their parents than anything else.

As we were directed out of the plane, I turned my cell phone on, noting the one missed call from Charlie, and then having a slight panic attack, but pushing my way through the turmoil. I dialed her number and pressed send as Edward navigated through the airport, looking for the closest exit available. As I listened to the phone ring, Edward hailed a cab and gave the address. I groaned internally, the cab fare was going to be huge; my mom didn't exactly live in the center of town.

I was watching Edward slather on what looked like _gallons_ of sunscreen onto his skin that was in direct sunlight. Vampire were sensitive to sunlight as the legends say, but not to the point of burning to death. To be honest, I had always compared the vampiric skin to that of someone like me, or in more extreme cases, an albino. We became sunburned easily, but we didn't die from it if the exposure wasn't for too long. Edward would probably have to drink more to make up for the sun's attack on his skin, something I was also worried about. Hopefully, Edward wouldn't be in too much pain for this trip.

Finally, _someone_ picked up at the house.

"Hello?" Good, it was Renee, meaning that I wouldn't have to go through Phil first. Don't get me wrong I tolerate him, but he just isn't someone that would be on a first name basis with me if he wasn't married to my mother. He was younger than she was, something that I knew bothered Charlie; seriously, nothing is more insulting to a person than seeing their ex with a younger model, but he was too polite to say anything.

I was about to speak, but of course, I was so nervous that I actually choked on a little of my own spit. _Suave Bella_. As I coughed and sputtered, I managed to get the words out. "Uh, hi Mom. How are you?"

Well that question opened up a can of worms. If there is anything to say about my mother other than the fact that she's an anti-vampire cougar is that she _loves_ to talk about herself, almost as bad as high school girls who think they are just so damn cool. After the preliminary comments there was about ten minutes of non-stop stories of how she and Phil had been to every single baseball game at the local stadium because of Phil's background. Phil had been on his way to becoming a pro baseball player a couple of years ago when he was still in college, but during one of his training sessions he had stumbled on a rock on the field and tore the tendons in his knee. Of course the amount of physical therapy and recovery time didn't sit well with recruiters, so he was quickly overlooked for someone else.

To top it off, one of the recruiters had been a vampire that was hiding in plain sight at the time, so when the big reveal happened and Phil found out; his resentment of not making it in to the majors perpetuated itself into hostility and resentment for vampires. Of course this complimented my mother's ideals; she just didn't find the existence of vampires natural and once my mom made up her mind, there was no changing it. That, in itself would be the biggest hurdle to overcome during this visit. Truthfully, my mother is a good person, but her opinions made her a little disconcerting. Her eyes would frost over and her posture tense, and most people would give her a wide berth.

When she finally stopped recounting everything that she and Phil did in the past couple of months, I seized the opportunity to tell her that I was coming for a visit; unannounced. I dug deep inside myself for the strength to somewhat tell the truth, but ultimately lie to my mom. Take_ a deep breath Bella. Okay, here it goes._ "Well that's great Mom, but I have a question for you."

For once she actually sounded like a parent that was genuinely interested in what their child had to say. Usually a conversation like this would end up in a shouting match that would prepare our lungs for a long day of swimming if we were so inclined. Unfortunately, this instance was eerily similar to our fights before I left to live with Charlie; I just prayed that it wouldn't end up like the others. "I was wondering if I could come to visit you for a while… If it's not too much trouble…" I felt so immature at this point; I was reverting back to the little girl that grew up in front of her eyes, afraid to speak her mind until she was old enough to _really_ talk back. I shook my head in exasperation with myself and continued on. "And I also have my boyfriend with me, so yeah, can we come over?" I quickly glanced at Edward and noted the small smile that appeared when he heard 'boyfriend.' I zoned out for a second before I touched back with reality; man, I just dropped a bomb on my mother, but I think her explosion would be much more impressive…

"Isabella Marie, are you telling me that you've had a boyfriend for all this time and didn't tell me?" I actually couldn't believe my ears at first, because they seemed out of character for my mother. Truthfully, I was an independent child when it came to living with Renee, mostly out of necessity. No offense to her, but I just don't think that she was ready to be a mother, so she just let me take care of myself. Only until I reached a more mature age did we have a somewhat intimate relationship. The fact that she was so concerned about my boyfriend and not what I was doing here was slightly disturbing, but that was my mother, she had always been slightly eccentric.

"Uh, yeah, mom, I have a boyfriend, I mean, I try to be social you know?" I used the best defense a child had against a parent: sarcasm. When I was answered with what I thought was stunned silence I just pushed forward with the conversation. "As I was saying, I just wanted to visit with you for a while and I wanted you to meet Edward. I think you will really like him." _Just so long as you don't know he's a different species than me and drinks blood, and is a person that you wouldn't even consider letting me date, you would just set him on fire with your eyes if you could._

"Well Bella, I think that would be a great idea, I've actually gone a bit stir crazy here with just Phil, so it would be a nice change of pace." Of course my mom couldn't stand to be the same room with Phil for too long, all he ever talked about was baseball. That was also one of the many minor reasons I moved in with Charlie, I probably would have gone insane listening to his ramblings.

After another couple minutes of shooting the breeze, we finally pulled up to their house.

It was just as I remembered it, a little on the small side, but still inviting. My mother had eclectic taste, and it showed with all of the iron rod artwork and sculptures she had probably coerced Phil into letting her keep.

Edward quietly slipped the cabby our fare and a generous tip, making me roll my eyes as I steeled myself. We got out of the cab; the heat instantly washed away the comfortable chill the cab had provided us, well, mainly me. "Well, Mom, we're here…"

"WHAT!" I heard rustling on her end of the line, a couple of clicks, and I glanced toward the house as the front door swung open. She was in a pair of khaki shorts and a yellow tank top, making her spray tan skin seem even more bronze. Her blue eyes were wide with disbelief as the hand holding her cell phone dropped to her side. I quickly placed my hand in Edward's, and noticed that his temperature was quickly rising from the heat of the day, he was still too cool to be normal, but it was a big change for me.

We made our way up the driveway, and stopped in front of my mom. After a few seconds of awkward staring, I leaned forward and gave her a one-armed hug (my other hand was still encased within Edward's), which she returned almost hesitantly. I cleared my throat, "Uh, hi, Mom, this is Edward, my boyfriend; he couldn't wait to meet you, so here… we… are…" I trailed off because her facial expression hadn't really changed, she was still shocked. I had never been an overly spontaneous person, so this would be abnormal to her, and truthfully it was.

Finally, she broke herself out of her trance and addressed us. "Well, Bella, this is certainly a surprise. Uh, hello, Edward, it's nice to meet you." She stuck her hand out quickly and Edward shook it gently, almost as if he was afraid to break her. Seeming to remember we were standing in one hundred-plus degree weather, she ushered us into the house, asking us if we wanted something to drink, which we declined.

The exterior of the house had remained the same, but the inside was a different story. Instead of the pictures that documented my life adorning the walls, the space was covered with newspaper clippings of Carlisle Cullen and flyers for rallies against vampiric rights. Not to mention, there were several rifles and other firearms in a case in the corner, no doubt, loaded with vervain darts. I felt Edward tense up slightly, his defensive instincts kicking in, but he soon calmed himself with a few deep breaths. I actually felt like I had died a little inside looking at those guns; they had actually gotten worse in my absence. Maybe it was because of me that they felt like they needed to act more normal, to keep their resentment in check…

Ice started flowing through my veins; Edward wouldn't be safe here if by some great misfortune Renee and Phil found out what he was. I looked up at him; his expression was calm, interested in his surroundings, giving nothing away. But then I looked into his eyes; they were overflowing with emotion; anxiety for the situation we were in, determination, I assume to evade my mother's prejudice, and adoration for me, the emotion that was allowing him to endure what I would say to be a form torture. I knew my eyes were showing sadness and worry, but he smiled crookedly and returned his attention to the tour of the house.

We wound up back in the living room; Phil was out running a couple of errands and wouldn't be back until dinner. After watching mindless sitcoms for a little while, my mom called me over and asked me to join her in the kitchen. I threw Edward an apologetic glance, but he waved me off with a look that said _don't worry about me_.

I followed my mom into the kitchen, finding her rummaging through the cupboards looking for something that I would eventually cook because my mother wasn't the most talented in that department. Unfortunately for her, she couldn't find anything that she deemed worthy of cooking, so she opted for takeout, mainly pizza asking if Edward liked pizza. I agreed, even though Edward didn't particularly like human food of any kind, and she placed a call for a pineapple pizza because, according to her, we were in Florida and we should embrace the _tropical-ness_ of it all, offering a glimmer of the carefree person she used to be.

She got down to business after that. "So Bella, Edward seems… nice." I knew that she was trying to be as polite as possible, but I knew there was something more there, and that put me on edge.

"Yeah, he really is, Mom. I care about him very much." I blushed because I knew Edward could hear us, and despite how close we were, admitting my feelings to someone else was still a little embarrassing for me. "I know that we have only known each other for a couple of months, but he is very important to me, we just click."

She breathed deeply through her nose and looked me squarely in the eye. "I just want you to be careful Bella. I know that I haven't been the most upstanding mother, but you're still my daughter… So, where is Edward staying tonight? By the way, I noticed you two didn't have any luggage when you got here…"

I knew that she was fishing for answers, but I couldn't give her the truth, it was too dangerous, not to mention, she would without a doubt kill Edward, and I _really_ didn't want that to happen. I decided to stretch the truth just a little, so she wouldn't ask any other questions, effectively dropping the topic. "Well, I haven't been getting along with Charlie lately, and it was kind of a spur of the moment decision, and I got his permission…" I tried looking as meek and pitiful as possible, hoping that her long dormant parental drive to take care of her child was still there.

It seemed to work, and I could still see the hesitance in her face, but thankfully she dropped it. With a sigh, she said, "Well thankfully, we didn't do too much to your room when you moved out, so I guess you're sleeping there. I'm sorry but I draw the line with Edward sharing a room with you. I know you're legally an adult, but I don't feel comfortable with that, so I'm sorry, but he has to sleep on the couch." _Well that's okay Mom, he doesn't sleep anyway…_

Despite the disappointment of having to spend the night alone, I smiled as genuinely as I could. "Okay, Mom, I'm just going to relay that little detail to Edward." Of course, that conversation would be for show, and nothing more.

I slipped out of the kitchen and walked down the hallway, towards the living room.

Then I heard it.

"Who the hell are you!" Phil was home. Yay.

Oh well, I brought Edward into the lion's den, it was only a matter of time before one of them roared…

* * *

So, was it worth the way-too-long wait? Any thoughts on Renee and Phil? I know I probably don't deserve it this time around, but a review would be nice… Thanks again!

-gg


	16. Chapter 16: Getting to Know You

Hi everyone! I'm so sorry for such a long delay with this chapter… I never meant for it to be that long (over a year yikes!). Please forgive me! I know I get frustrated when an author doesn't update in a timely fashion, but as many people say RL got in the way ( I never really believed it until it happened to me. Seriously, it really did: nursing school, family reunions, etc. and a year went in the blink of an eye). Well, enough of my chatter, here's what I know you were really anxious to read… right?

Oh, and PS:

If you don't remember since I took so long to update, I don't own Twilight… just throwing that out there… :-P

* * *

_Previously…_

_Edward and Bella managed to escape a car wreck caused by Riley, who was sent by some unknown vampire that is the leader of the Volturi, and they hopped a plane to Florida to visit Renee and to draw the danger that seems to follow them away from Charlie. The sunlight would offer some protection from other vampires, but it hinders Edward's stay slightly as well. After meeting Renee (and managing to avoid revealing his species to her) , Edward remains in the living room while Bella and her mother decide whether to throw something together or order out for dinner while waiting for Phil to return home from work. _

* * *

**The Light in His Eyes**

_Chapter 16: Getting to Know You_

* * *

**EPOV**

I waved Bella off as she and her mother walked out of the living room, performing their own form of hunting for something to eat. I knew that her mother wanted to discuss me; her thoughts were curious and questions were racing through her consciousness a mile a minute.

As I sat on the small love seat in the living room of Renee's home while Bella and her mother began digging around the kitchen, I heard his thoughts blaring through the relative calm of the neighborhood, and I braced myself for what was to come.

From what I heard from Bella, I wasn't exactly as safe as she was here, but that wasn't my primary concern anyway. Her safety would always mean more to me. Although if the tenor of Phil's thoughts were any indication how this would play out, we could be in trouble. His mind was very defensive; combative even. I had a feeling that this wouldn't go as smoothly as we had hoped.

Meeting Renee had been a bit different than what I had assumed. She seemed more kind than what I was led to believe, but I was still wary. My concern was slightly confirmed listening to Bella's conversation with her mother, but I was trying to block it out as much as possible to give them some semblance of privacy.

The sound of the engine of his car came closer and closer until finally, it was in the driveway, and was promptly cut off. With a slam of a door and some heavy footsteps, Phil had arrived.

I knew that Bella wasn't particularly fond of her step father; she would always tense up when mentioning him, but she was determined to make the relationship with her mother to work, no matter how strained it was. I guess that made Bella similar to vampires in a way, she was unmoving, constant in her feelings when it came to her loved ones, a staple in vampiric emotions.

I was going to experience first-hand the dynamics of this side of Bella's family, and to be honest I was a little on edge, because it could explode in our faces at any moment.

I could hear his footsteps approaching the house; and despite of myself, I tensed up slightly. The tumbler in the front door clicked and the doorknob began to turn. Phil was home.

He turned around after locking the front door, and his gaze settled on me.

To say that he was pleased to see me would be laughable.

He took one look at me and immediately his thoughts began forming at a breakneck pace. Obviously, he processed internally, going through various scenarios to explain my presence in his home.

_Who is this? Where is Renee? Why is he here? I can't call the police; he'll see what I'm doing…_

Strangely, his mind took his train of thought to different types of sports stats, but I chalked it up to the amount of surprise he was experiencing.

Eventually, he spluttered out, "Who the hell are you!" He tried to make himself more formidable by standing up straighter and with a menacing step forward, he prepared himself for an attack on my part.

I decided that there would be safety in numbers, so I stood up slowly, and raised my voice slightly and with as much enthusiasm as I could muster I announced, "Renee! Bella! Phil's home!"

This seemed to confuse him more, with the mention of Bella, and the fact that I knew his wife's name.

The clattering in the kitchen stopped, and eager feet pounded against the wooden floors towards me, followed by a set of more hesitant steps. Renee practically flew into the room by human standards a smile on her face, and thoughts of expectation as Phil stepped further in. Both sets of their thoughts were warm and affectionate as they embraced in greeting, seemingly contradictory with what Bella had told me about their personalities… but I filed that thought away for later. Bella finally caught up with the rest of us. With each step closer to me, Bella's presence seemed to calm my nerves, making the situation a bit more comfortable. When she was close enough, I reached out and tucked her into my side.

I smiled down at her and took a deep breath of her scent as she squeezed me back in reassurance, although I could see the slight apprehension in her eyes. I turned back to Renee and Phil, mentally preparing a suitable greeting.

My gaze was met with two blue eyes, which were calculating, analyzing me, trying to figure out who I was, making conclusions based on the way I was holding Bella, how at ease Renee was and so forth.

I opened my mouth to introduce myself, but Renee beat me to it. Still grinning, she ran her hand down his arm, "Phil, look who showed up today! Bella and her boyfriend Edward came to visit us for a while…" She glanced at us, winked at Phil and whispered, "They're playing hooky. Who would have though my daughter was capable of such travesties, huh?"

I smiled slightly at Renee's childish nature, and stuck my hand out towards Phil. "Nice to meet you sir."

Gingerly, Phil dropped his arm from around Renee and slipped his hand into mind, pumping it twice. "Hello, Edward." He was still hesitant about me, but since Renee was alright with my presence he decided to be a little friendlier towards me. "I'm sorry to say that Bella has told us so much about you, but I'm afraid that would be a lie." Bella tensed in my arms. I knew he thought that he sounded light and joking, but it sounded forced and slightly bitter, tension blooming in the room.

There it was; the pessimism that Bella was talking about. He didn't seem to hold Bella in such esteem either. In some twisted way, he thought that her tolerance, no _acceptance_ towards my kind was a cause of many problems facing his family and those around them, even though they were no way connected. I was beginning to see what Bella had to deal with when she lived with her mother; it wasn't a pleasant atmosphere at all.

I just smiled apologetically and nodded. "Well, I hope to rectify that over dinner…" At the mention of dinner, Bella wrenched herself away from me and flew back to the kitchen, mumbling something about a jar and money for the delivery guy… I guessed we were going to have pizza.

We all stared after her; eventually, Renee indicated we all take our seats while she went to check on Bella. I groaned inwardly,_ I wanted to do that_…

I sat back down in my original spot, while Phil sat across from me. I decided I would get some of the preliminary information out of the way, and smooth things over with Phil as best I could. I knew we were imposing on him, but this was Bella's safety on the line and I wouldn't accept anything less than his cooperation at this point.

I cleared my throat unnecessarily and maintained eye contact, "I want to apologize for the abruptness of our visit… Bella had mentioned that she hadn't seen her mother for quite some time, and we decided to come here on impulse."

His steely gaze raked over me as he spoke, "I can't say that I'm surprised, it's been quite a while since those two saw each other, I thought it would be a matter of time before she showed up at our doorstep again… Although, I didn't think that she would be carrying so much _baggage_."

I knew he didn't mean the bags that we should have brought with us. His hostility caused him spit the last sentence, and naturally my natural reaction was to become defensive, but I couldn't afford to start a confrontation with this man, there were bigger things to worry about.

I breathed in deeply through my nose, trying to calm myself. "As I said, I'm sorry for dropping by so unexpectedly; we didn't mean to be such an inconvenience. Bella told me that she and her mother haven't always seen eye to eye, and she was hoping that this trip would help them mend some fences." I tried to sound as sincere as possible, hoping just a little understanding would appear in his conscious mind.

_Well, Renee had mentioned seeing Bella again… Lord knows why… They fought over the stupidest shit…_

I let him mull over the idea of Renee and Bella getting their relationship back on track, when I heard a car pull up, the smell of tomatoes and cheese becoming stronger.

Right on cue, Bella came back into the living room, clutching a few bills in her hand, Renee following after her and sitting next to Phil with a small smirk on her face. Bella smiled at me as she walked by towards the front door, and paid for the pizzas.

As she was turning around, her foot got caught on the corner of a throw rug, and she started to fall. I was up and across the room as fast as I could without being conspicuous and righted her.

Blushing, Bella thanked me and slowly made her way to the coffee table in front of Phil and Renee, placed the food down, and then made her way to the loveseat. I glanced up, noting the appraising way that Phil and Renee were studying me. Both of them didn't seem to focus on me though, their inner monologues centered on Bella.

_Well she still hasn't grown out of this klutz phase yet…_ Phil was mentally rolling his eyes.

Renee, however, seemed to find our interaction a little romantic, but she still held the reservations of a parent of a teenage girl. _He's so attentive, no wonder Bella seemed so taken with him… Still, she's too young to be in such a serious relationship, does she want to live through my mistakes too?_

Trying to ignore the negative thoughts, I joined Bella on the loveseat, and we all started eating pizza from the box. I didn't care too much for human food, but the pineapple on the pizza was an interesting combination… While we were eating Renee turned on the television, hoping to relieve some of the tension floating in the air.

Unfortunately, the first thing that popped up on the screen was a local news station covering vampire activity that had residents in other counties and nearby states worrying. Image after image displayed violence and utter chaos between humans and vampires. It was actually quite astounding at how the conflicts seemed to be escalating. I knew that Carlisle was probably worrying himself to death (figuratively) about it. None of our family wanted this.

Phil's voice broke me out of my thoughts. "Filthy leeches; we don't need any more problems… They need to be annihilated!" He slammed his fist on the arm of the couch. Renee kept her eyes on the screen as she absentmindedly rubbed his forearm. She didn't say anything out loud, but you could see her agreement through her body language, and, for me, in her thoughts.

Bella and I grew more uncomfortable as the minutes dragged by, the pizza abandoned in the box. I wrapped around her and started rubbing her shoulder. She breathed deeply and adjusted herself in her seat so she was closer to me.

I knew she wanted to say something to them, but she was restraining herself. I also knew that her patience was wearing thin.

She sighed and looked at her mother. "Mom, I think I'm gonna hit the sack. The flight just took a lot out of me." She didn't sound tired though, she sounded frustrated. I wanted to roll my eyes. No offense to Bella, but her acting skills weren't up to par tonight.

I stood up and pulled her with me. "I'll just grab my things while Bella gets ready for bed." I gave Bella a pointed look as she led me to her bedroom, and handed me a toothbrush, blanket, and a pillow.

"She's right Phil, it's pretty late. Let's go to bed." Renee sounded tired, but not physically. I think she was just tired of Bella's attitude towards her and Phil more than anything. I heard them get up and the TV was shut off.

I made a show of louder-than-necessary noises getting ready for bed, and heading to my designated spot, biding my time as I listened to Phil and Renee's thoughts as they drifted into unconsciousness.

Quickly making my way back into Bella's room, I found her under the covers, her loose tank top peeking over the sheets, leaning against the headboard. She had a hard but weary look upon her face as I silently walked over to the side of the bed. She looked into my eyes and patted the mattress next to her.

Smiling slightly, I crawled over her, and lay down next to her above the covers. She quickly turned to me and threw her arms around my neck. Sighing, I wrapped my arms around her back and stroked her hair.

She took a deep breath, "I hate being here, Edward."

I clutched her a little tighter, "I know Bella, but it's for the best. We'll just have to tolerate this for a bit longer." I tried to sound optimistic for Bella, but it saddened to think that she had such a wedge driven between her and one of her parents. I didn't want her to hurt.

Bella didn't say anything after that, just cuddling closer to me and slowly drifted off to sleep. I'd like to think that I helped keep her worries away as she slept. I kept myself wrapped around her throughout the night, keeping her cool in the sweltering heat.

Unfortunately, my time with her was limited; at around 6:30 in the morning, I could sense that Phil would wake up soon based on his thoughts and breathing patterns, so I carefully loosened my hold on Bella, kissed her forehead, and made my way back to my 'bed.' I laid down, and tossed and turned a bit, giving it the appearance of a slept-in cot, before stilling and pretending to be asleep.

I could hear Phil come down the hallway, and make his way towards the kitchen. With a few sounds of dishes and cabinets emanating from the room, I pretended to wake up, stretching and yawning unnecessarily.

I fixed my pillow and blanket, and then sat back down on the couch, hoping someone would wake up soon, so I wouldn't have to deal with Phil alone. Thankfully, the aroma of coffee seemed to rouse Bella and Renee from their sleep, so I didn't have to wait long.

As I heard their footsteps coming closer, I allowed myself to hope. Hope to make this visit work. Hope to keep Bella safe and happy. Hope to formulate a plan to rid the country of the vampires that wished to set us back, to make us monsters again, despite what my father had accomplished.

I inhaled, and caught Bella's scent; closing my eyes at the euphoria it granted me. I sensed her as she sat down next to me, and opened my eyes as she reached over to clasp my hand in hers. Looking at her, it made our problems worth the fight. Steeling myself, I told her, "Well, who knows how long we're going to be here, so let's make the most of this, shall we?"

Bella gave me a tiny smile and a nod, standing and towing me towards Renee and Phil in the kitchen. It was time to get our acts together.

* * *

I know, I know, this chapter was a little shorter than usual, but it was just laying the groundwork for the next chapter. Based on my outline (yes I actually have one, I'm so proud of myself), there will probably be a little more action coming up in the next couple of chapters. I hope that it was at least somewhat satisfying (despite this being more of a filler chapter… *shrugs*). I just wanted to say thanks to those that have stuck around in light of me being MIA for so long, and to those who just discovered this story and had enough faith to add it or me their alerts and to review.

Hopefully I'll be able to get another chapter out soon, I have finals coming up in the next month, so I'm still pretty busy, but afterwards I'll have more free time to devote to this little tale.

Thanks for reading!

-gg


End file.
